Selective detection of bed bugs

ABSTRACT

A device, system, and method of controlling pests are disclosed. A pest control device includes a sensor having a sensor cell and a controller. A surface of the sensor cell is coated with an agent that reacts with a targeted biochemical analyte secreted by pests. The controller is coupled to the sensor and is configured to receive sensor data from the sensor cell indicative of a rate of change in sensor mass detected on the surface of the sensor cell, determine whether the rate of change in the sensor mass based on the received sensor data exceeds a predefined threshold rate, and transmit a pest detection alert notification to a server in response to a determination that the rate of change exceeds the predetermined threshold rate.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

The present application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional PatentApplication No. 62/770,413, filed on Nov. 21, 2018, the disclosure ofwhich is incorporated herein by reference.

Cross reference is made to U.S. application Ser. No. 15/985,093, filedMay 21, 2018, and International Application Serial No.PCT/US2018/033679, filed May 21, 2018.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present disclosure relates generally to pest control, and moreparticularly, to the detection, monitoring, and control of insects,including for example, bed bugs.

BACKGROUND

Recent data suggests bed bug infestations (Cimex species) of humandomiciles are on the rise. At least 92 species have been identifiedglobally, of which at least 16 species are in the North Americancontinent. Generally, bed bugs are parasitic pests with hosts includinghumans and various domesticated animals. It is believed that bed buginfestations are becoming more problematic now at least in part becauselong acting, residual insecticides are no longer being used to keep bedbug populations in check. In addition, increased international traveland insecticide resistance have made bed bug infestations spread andcontrol with insecticides very difficult. In terms of scale, suchinfestations are of particular concern for hoteliers, cruise ships,trains, daycare facilities, and the like because of the businessreputation risk posed by bad press or bad reviews. Other problematicareas tend to include nursing homes, barracks, dorms, hospitals, andvarious other forms of high density housing. Nonetheless, single familyhomes can likewise be impacted adversely.

An exemplary bed bug behavioral study is described in Corraine A.McNeill et al., Journal Of Medical Entomology, 2016 Jul. 1.53(4):760-769, which is hereby incorporated by reference in itsentirety. Exemplary studies about bed bug mating behavior and pheromoneare described in Vincent Harraca et al., BMC Biology. 2010 Sep. 9; 8:121and Joelle F Olson et al., Pest Management Science, 2017 January; 73(1):198-205, each of which is hereby incorporated by reference in itsentirety. Suitable sampling and pre-concentration techniques aredescribed in Maria Rosa Ras et al., Trac Trends In Analytical Chemistry,2009 Mar. 28(3): 347-361, which is hereby incorporated by reference inits entirety. Exemplary antibody detection methods for bed bugs aredescribed in U.S. Pat. No. 9,500,643 and U.S. Pat. App. No.2017/0137501, each of which is hereby incorporated by reference in itsentirety. An exemplary detection system based on image analysis isdescribed in U.S. Pat. No. 9,664,813, which is hereby incorporated byreference in its entirety.

SUMMARY

According to one aspect of the disclosure, a pest control device isdisclosed. The pest control device comprises a sensor that includes asensor cell and a controller coupled to the sensor. A surface of thesensor cell is coated with an agent that reacts with a targetedbiochemical analyte secreted by pests. The controller is configured toreceive sensor data from the sensor cell indicative of a rate of changein sensor mass detected on the surface of the sensor cell, determinewhether the rate of change in the sensor mass based on the receivedsensor data exceeds a predefined threshold rate, and transmit a pestdetection alert notification to a server in response to a determinationthat the rate of change exceeds the predetermined threshold rate. Therate of change correlates to an increase in the concentration of thetargeted biochemical analyte.

In some embodiments, the pest control device may include a handle thatprovides a grip for a human operator to move the pest control device toidentify a localized area of the targeted biochemical analyte.

In some embodiments, the controller may be further configured toactivate a timer when the rate of change exceeds a predefined thresholdrate, deactivate the timer when the rate of change returns to less thanthe predefined threshold rate, determine an amount of time that the rateof change in the sensor mass exceeded the predefined threshold rate, anddetermine whether the amount of time is greater than a predefined timeperiod.

In some embodiments, the controller may transmit a pest detection alertnotification in response to a determination that the amount of time isgreater than the predefined time period.

In some embodiments, the predefined threshold rate may be a base masschange rate in the presence of bed bugs.

In some embodiments, the targeted biochemical analyte may include ananalyte found in secretion of bed bugs. For example, in someembodiments, the targeted biochemical analyte may includetrans-2-hexenal (T2H). Additionally or alternatively, in someembodiments, the targeted biochemical analyte may includetrans-2-octenal (T2O). In some embodiments, the targeted biochemicalanalyte may include 4-oxo-(E)-2-hexenal. In some embodiments, thetargeted biochemical analyte may include 4-oxo-(E)-2-octenal.

In some embodiments, the agent may include dioctyl cyclic thiolintermediate (dioctyl-CTI). Additionally or alternatively, in someembodiments, the agent may include cyclic thiol intermediate (CTI).

In some embodiments, the sensor may be a quartz crystal microbalance. Insome embodiments, the sensor cell may be a quartz crystal resonator.

According to another aspect, a method of detecting a presence of pestsis disclosed. The method includes receiving data indicative of a sensormass rate of change from a sensor, determining whether the sensor massrate of change exceeds a predefined threshold rate, and transmitting apest detection alert notification to a server in response to adetermination that the rate of change exceeds the predeterminedthreshold rate. The sensor includes a coating that reacts with atargeted biochemical analyte secreted by pests, and the sensor mass rateof change correlates to an increase in a concentration of a targetedbiochemical analyte.

In some embodiments, the method may include activating a timer when therate of change exceeds a predefined threshold rate, deactivating thetimer when the rate of change returns to less than the predefinedthreshold rate, determining an amount of time that the rate of change inthe sensor mass exceeded the predefined threshold rate, and determiningwhether the amount of time is greater than a predefined time period.

In some embodiments, transmitting the pest detection alert notificationmay include transmitting a pest detection alert notification in responseto a determination that the amount of time is greater than thepredefined time period.

In some embodiments, the predefined threshold rate may be a base masschange rate in the presence of bed bugs.

In some embodiments, the targeted biochemical analyte may includetrans-2-hexenal (T2H). Additionally or alternatively, in someembodiments, the targeted biochemical analyte may includetrans-2-octenal (T20). In some embodiments, the targeted biochemicalanalyte may include 4-oxo-(E)-2-hexenal. In some embodiments, thetargeted biochemical analyte may include 4-oxo-(E)-2-octenal.

In some embodiments, the coating may include dioctyl cyclic thiolintermediate (dioctyl-CTI). Additionally or alternatively, in someembodiments, the coating may include cyclic thiol intermediate (CTI).

In some embodiments, the sensor may be a quartz crystal microbalance.

In some embodiments, the surface of the sensor cell may be coated with acoating gel compound that includes a polymer gel and the agent.

In some embodiments, the polymer gel may have high viscosity and highthermal and chemical stability to form a stable coating on the surfaceof the sensor cell. In some embodiments, the polymer gel may have a lowmolecular weight.

In some embodiments, the polymer gel may be at least one ofpolymethylphenylsiloxiane (PMPS), polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS), fluoroalcohol polycarbosilane, fluoro alcohol polysiloxane,bisphenol-containing polymer (BSP3),poly-2-dimethylamin-ethyl-methacrylate (PDMAEMC), and polymers withsilicone (Si) and iron (F).

In some embodiments, the polymer gel may be polymethylphenylsiloxiane(PMPS). Alternatively, in some embodiments, the polymer gel may bepolydimethylsiloxane (PDMS). Alternatively, in some embodiments, thepolymer gel may be fluoroalcohol polycarbosilane. Alternatively, in someembodiments, the polymer gel may be fluoroalcohol polysiloxane.Alternatively, in some embodiments, the polymer gel may bebisphenol-containing polymer (BSP3). Alternatively, in some embodiments,the polymer gel may be poly-2-dimethylamin-ethyl-methacrylate (PDMAEMC).Alternatively, in some embodiments, the polymer gel may be polymers withsilicone (Si) and iron (F).

According to another aspect, a method of detecting a presence of pestsis disclosed. The method includes receiving first sensor data from asensor, receiving second sensor data from the sensor, determining afirst slope of signal change based on the first and second sensor data,receiving third sensor data from the sensor, determining a second slopeof signal change based on the second and third sensor data, determiningif the second slope is different from the first slope, and transmittinga pest detection alert notification to a server in response to adetermination that the second slope is different from the first slope.The sensor includes a coating that reacts with a targeted biochemicalanalyte secreted by pests, and the signal change correlates to anincrease in a concentration of a targeted biochemical analyte.

In some embodiments, the method further includes activating a timer whenthe second slope is different from the first slope, receiving sensordata from the sensor and determining a slope of signal change based onthe sensor data while the timer is active, deactivating the timer upondetecting no change in slope, determining a time interval measured bythe timer, and determining whether the time interval is greater than apredefined time period. In some embodiments, transmitting the pestdetection alert notification comprises transmitting a pest detectionalert notification in response to a determination that the time intervalis greater than the predefined time period.

In some embodiments, the predefined threshold rate may be a base masschange rate in the presence of bed bugs.

In some embodiments, the targeted biochemical analyte may includetrans-2-hexenal (T2H). Additionally or alternatively, in someembodiments, the targeted biochemical analyte may includetrans-2-octenal (T2O). In some embodiments, the targeted biochemicalanalyte may include 4-oxo-(E)-2-hexenal. In some embodiments, thetargeted biochemical analyte may include 4-oxo-(E)-2-octenal.

In some embodiments, the coating may include dioctyl cyclic thiolintermediate (dioctyl-CTI). Additionally or alternatively, in someembodiments, the coating may include cyclic thiol intermediate (CTI).

In some embodiments, the sensor may be a quartz crystal microbalance.

In some embodiments, the coating includes a polymer gel and dioctylcyclic thiol intermediate (dioctyl-CTI) or cyclic thiol intermediate(CTI).

In some embodiments, the polymer gel may have high viscosity and highthermal and chemical stability to form a stable coating on the surfaceof the sensor cell. In some embodiments, the polymer gel may have a lowmolecular weight.

In some embodiments, the polymer gel may be at least one ofpolymethylphenylsiloxiane (PMPS), polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS),fluoroalcohol polycarbosilane, fluoroalcohol polysiloxane,bisphenol-containing polymer (BSP3),poly-2-dimethylamin-ethyl-methacrylate (PDMAEMC), and polymers withsilicone (Si) and iron (F).

In some embodiments, the polymer gel may be polymethylphenylsiloxiane(PMPS). Alternatively, in some embodiments, the polymer gel may bepolydimethylsiloxane (PDMS). Alternatively, in some embodiments, thepolymer gel may be fluoroalcohol polycarbosilane. Alternatively, in someembodiments, the polymer gel may be fluoroalcohol polysiloxane.Alternatively, in some embodiments, the polymer gel may bebisphenol-containing polymer (BSP3). Alternatively, in some embodiments,the polymer gel may be poly-2-dimethylamin-ethyl-methacrylate (PDMAEMC).Alternatively, in some embodiments, the polymer gel may be polymers withsilicone (Si) and iron (F).

According to another aspect, a method includes determining an amount ofagent available on a pest detection sensor to react with a targetedbiochemical analyte secreted by pests, determining whether the amount ofagent is below a threshold level, and transmitting a notification to aserver indicating that the sensor requires a maintenance in response toa determination that the amount of agent is below the threshold level.An amount of the agent coated on the pest detection sensor decreases asthe agent reacts with the targeted biochemical analyte.

In some embodiments, the agent may include dioctyl cyclic thiolintermediate (dioctyl-CTI). Additionally or alternatively, in someembodiments, the agent may include cyclic thiol intermediate (CTI).

In some embodiments, the targeted biochemical analyte may include ananalyte found in secretion of bed bugs. For example, the targetedbiochemical analyte may include trans-2-hexenal (T2H). Additionally oralternatively, in some embodiments, the targeted biochemical analyte mayinclude trans-2-octenal (T2O). In some embodiments, the targetedbiochemical analyte may include 4-oxo-(E)-2-hexenal. In someembodiments, the targeted biochemical analyte may include4-oxo-(E)-2-octenal.

In some embodiments, the threshold level is determined based on aminimum amount of agent required to react with the targeted biochemicalanalyte.

According to another aspect, a cyclic thiol of the formula I

or a tautomer thereof is disclosed, wherein

X is S or O;

Z¹ and Z² are each independently O or S;

R¹ is selected from the group consisting of hydrogen, C₁-C₁₂ alkyl,C₂-C₁₂ alkenyl, C₆-C₁₀ aryl, 5- to 7-membered heteroaryl, —OR⁵, —S R⁵,—(OC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(x)R⁵, —(SC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(y)R⁵, —(OC₁-C₄alkylene)_(x)(SC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(y)R⁵, (SC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(y)(OC₁-C₄alkylene)_(x)R⁵, C₁-C₃ alkylene(OC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(x)R⁵, C₁-C₃alkylene(SC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(y)R⁵, C₁-C₃ alkylene(OC₁-C₄alkylene)_(x)(SC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(y)R⁵, and C₁-C₃ alkylene(SC₁-C₄alkylene)_(y)(OC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(x)R⁵;

R² is selected from the group consisting of hydrogen, C₃-C₁₂ alkyl,C₂-C₁₂ alkenyl, C₆-C₁₀ aryl, 5- to 7-membered heteroaryl, —OR⁵, —SR⁵,—(OC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(x)R⁵, —(SC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(y)R⁵, —(OC₁-C₄alkylene)_(x)(SC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(y)R⁵, —(SC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(y)(OC₁-C₄alkylene)_(x)R⁵, C₁-C₃ alkylene(OC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(x)R⁵, C₁-C₃alkylene(SC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(y)R⁵, C₁-C₃ alkylene(OC₁-C₄alkylene)_(x)(SC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(y)R⁵, and C₁-C₃ alkylene(SC₁-C₄alkylene)_(y)(OC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(x)R⁵;

R³, R^(3′), R⁴, and R^(4′) are each independently selected from thegroup consisting of hydrogen, C₁-C₈ alkyl, C₂-C₈ alkenyl, and C₆-C₁₀aryl;

R⁵ is selected from the group consisting of hydrogen, C₁-C₈ alkyl, C₂-C₈alkenyl, C₆-C₁₀ aryl, and a polymeric bulking group;

a is 0 or 1; and

x and y are each independently an integer from 1 to 10.

In some embodiments, X may be S. In some embodiments, Z¹ may be O. Insome embodiments, Z¹ and Z² may each be O. In some embodiments, X may beS, and Z¹ and Z² may each be O.

In some embodiments, R¹ and R² may each be C₄-C₁₀ alkyl and may be thesame. For example, in some embodiments, R¹ and R² may each be octyl.

Additionally or alternatively, in some embodiments, at least one of R¹and R² may be coupled to the polymeric bulking group. In someembodiments, at least one of R¹ and R² may be hydrogen.

In some embodiments, the polymeric bulking group may be selected fromthe group consisting of a silicone, a polyolefin, a polyamide, apolyester, a polycarbonate, a polyaramide, a polyurethane, apolystyrene, an epoxy, a rubber, a starch, a protein, a cellulose, anacrylate, an ABS polymer, a PEEK polymer, a polyol, polyether,polyetherpolyol, and a copolymer of two or more of the foregoing. Forexample, in some embodiments, the polymeric bulking group may be asilsesquioxane. In some embodiments, the polymeric bulking group may becrosslinked.

In some embodiments, R¹ may be of the formula CH₂O(CH₂)₃S(CH₂)₃R⁵.

In some embodiments, the cyclic thiol may have a weight of about 350 Dato about 5000 Da.

In some embodiments, a may be 1.

In some embodiments, R³, R^(3′), R⁴, and R^(4′) may each be hydrogen.

In some embodiments, the cyclic thiol may be of the formula

wherein R¹ and R² may each independently be hexyl or octyl. For example,in some embodiments, R¹ and R² may each be octyl.

In some embodiments, the thiol group may have a pKa of about 1 to about4.

According to another aspect, a cyclic adduct of the formula II

or a tautomer thereof is disclosed, wherein

X is S or O;

Z¹ and Z² are each independently O or S;

R¹ is selected from the group consisting of hydrogen, C₁-C₁₂ alkyl,C₂-C₁₂ alkenyl, C₆-C₁₀ aryl, 5- to 7-membered heteroaryl, —OR⁵, —SR⁵,—(OC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(x)R⁵, —(SC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(y)R⁵, —(OC₁-C₄alkylene)_(x)(SC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(y)R⁵, —(SC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(y)(OC₁-C₄alkylene)_(x)R⁵, C₁-C₃ alkylene(OC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(x)R⁵, C₁-C₃alkylene(SC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(y)R⁵, C₁-C₃ alkylene(OC₁-C₄alkylene)_(x)(SC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(y)R⁵, and C₁-C₃ alkylene(SC₁-C₄alkylene)_(y)(OC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(x)R⁵;

R² is selected from the group consisting of hydrogen, C₁-C₁₂ alkyl,C₂-C₁₂ alkenyl, C₆-C₁₀ aryl, 5- to 7-membered heteroaryl, —OR⁵, —SR⁵,—(OC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(x)R⁵, —(SC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(y)R⁵, —(OC₁-C₄alkylene)_(x)(SC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(y)R⁵, —(SC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(y)(OC₁-C₄alkylene)_(x)R⁵, C₁-C₃ alkylene(OC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(y)R⁵, C₁-C₃alkylene(SC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(y)R⁵, C₁-C₃ alkylene(OC₁-C₄alkylene)_(x)(SC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(y)R⁵, and C₁-C₃ alkylene(SC₁-C₄alkylene)_(y)(OC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(x)R⁵;

R³, R^(3′), R⁴, and R^(4′) are each independently selected from thegroup consisting of hydrogen, C₁-C₈ alkyl, C₂-C₈ alkenyl, and C₆-C₁₀aryl;

R⁵ is selected from the group consisting of hydrogen, C₁-C₈ alkyl, C₂-C₈alkenyl, C₆-C₁₀ aryl, and a polymeric bulking group;

R⁶ is C₁-C₁₂ alkyl or oxo substituted C₁-C₁₂ alkyl;

a is 0 or 1; and

x and y are each independently an integer from 1 to 10.

In some embodiments, R⁶ may be propyl or pentyl. For example, in someembodiments, R⁶ may be pentyl. In some embodiments, R⁶ may be1-oxopropyl or 1-oxopentyl.

According to another aspect, a thiol of the formula III

or a tautomer thereof is disclosed, wherein

X is S or O;

Z¹ and Z² are each independently O or S;

R¹ is selected from the group consisting of hydrogen, C₁-C₁₂ alkyl,C₂-C₁₂ alkenyl, C₆-C₁₀ aryl, 5- to 7-membered heteroaryl, —OR⁵, —SR⁵,—(OC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(x)R⁵, —(SC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(y)R⁵, —(OC₁-C₄alkylene)_(x)(SC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(y)R⁵, —(SC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(y)(OC₁-C₄alkylene)_(x)R⁵, C₁-C₃ alkylene(OC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(x)R⁵, C₁-C₃alkylene(SC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(y)R⁵, C₁-C₃ alkylene(OC₁-C₄alkylene)_(x)(SC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(y)R⁵, and C₁-C₃ alkylene(SC₁-C₄alkylene)_(y)(OC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(x)R⁵;

R² is selected from the group consisting of C₃-C₁₂ alkyl, C₂-C₁₂alkenyl, C₆-C_(10 aryl,) 5- to 7-membered heteroaryl, —OR⁵, —SR⁵,—(OC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(x)R⁵, —(SC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(y)R⁵, —(OC₁-C₄alkylene)_(x)(SC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(y)R⁵, (SC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(y)(OC₁-C₄alkylene)_(x)R⁵, C₁-C₃ alkylene(OC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(x)R⁵, C₁-C₃alkylene(SC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(y)R⁵, C₁-C₃ alkylene(OC₁-C₄alkylene)_(x)(SC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(y)R⁵, and C₁-C₃ alkylene(SC₁-C₄alkylene)_(y)(OC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(x)R⁵;

R⁵ is selected from the group consisting of hydrogen, C₁-C₈ alkyl, C₂-C₈alkenyl, C₆-C₁₀ aryl, and a polymeric bulking group;

a is 0 or 1; and

x and y are each independently an integer from 1 to 10.

According to another aspect, an adduct of the formula IV

or a tautomer thereof is disclosed, wherein

X is S or O;

Z¹ and Z² are each independently O or S;

R¹ is selected from the group consisting of hydrogen, C₁-C₁₂ alkyl,C₂-C₁₂ alkenyl, C₆-C₁₀ aryl, 5- to 7-membered heteroaryl, —OR⁵, —SR⁵,—(OC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(x)R⁵, —(SC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(y)R⁵, —(OC₁-C₄alkylene)_(x)(SC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(y)R⁵, —(SC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(y)(OC₁-C₄alkylene)_(x)R⁵, C₁-C₃ alkylene(OC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(x)R⁵, C₁-C₃alkylene(SC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(y)R⁵, C₁-C₃ alkylene(OC₁-C₄alkylene)_(x)(SC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(y)R⁵, and C₁-C₃ alkylene(SC₁-C₄alkylene)_(y)(OC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(x)R⁵;

R² is selected from the group consisting of hydrogen, C₁-C₁₂ alkyl,C₂-C₁₂ alkenyl, C₆-C₁₀ aryl, 5- to 7-membered heteroaryl, —OR⁵, —SR⁵,—(OC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(x)R⁵, —(SC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(y)R⁵, —(OC₁-C₄alkylene)_(x)(SC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(y)R⁵, —(SC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(y)(OC₁-C₄alkylene)_(x)R⁵, C₁-C₃ alkylene(OC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(x)R⁵, C₁-C₃alkylene(SC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(y)R⁵, C₁-C₃ alkylene(OC₁-C₄alkylene)_(x)(SC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(y)R⁵, and C₁-C₃ alkylene(SC₁-C₄alkylene)_(y)(OC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(x)R⁵;

R⁵ is selected from the group consisting of hydrogen, C₁-C₈ alkyl, C₂-C₈alkenyl, C₆-C₁₀ aryl, and a polymeric bulking group;

R⁶ is C₁-C₁₂, alkyl or oxo substituted C₁-C₁₂ alkyl;

a is 0 or 1; and

x and y are each independently an integer from 1 to 10.

According to another aspect, an adduct of the formula V

or a tautomer thereof is disclosed, wherein

X is S or O;

Z³ and Z⁴ are each independently O or S;

R⁷ and R⁸ are each independently selected from the group consisting ofC₁-C₄ alkylene-O—(C₁-C₄ alkylene)_(q)R⁹ and C₁-C₄ alkylene-S—(C₁-C₄alkylene)_(z)R¹⁹;

R⁹ and R¹⁰ are each independently selected from the group consisting ofhydrogen, C₁-C₈ alkyl, C₂-C₈ alkenyl, C₆-C₁₀ aryl, and a polymericbulking group; and

q and z are each independently an integer from 0 to 10.

In some embodiments, each of R⁷ and R⁸ may be C₁-C₄ alkylene-O—(C₁-C₄alkylene)_(q)R⁹. For example, in some embodiments, each of R⁷ and R⁸ maybe C₂ alkylene-O—(C₁-C₄ alkylene)_(q)R⁹

In some embodiments, each of R⁷ and R⁸ may be C₁-C₄ alkylene-O—(C₁-C₄alkylene)_(q)R⁹ and q may be zero. For example, in some embodiments,each of R⁷ and R⁸ may be C₂ alkylene-O—R⁹.

In some embodiments, each of R⁷ and R⁸ may be C₁-C₄ alkylene-O—(C₁-C₄alkylene)_(q)R⁹, q may be zero, and R⁹ may be C₁-C₈ alkyl. For example,in some embodiments, each of R⁷ and R⁸ may be CH₂—CH₂—O—CH₃.

According to another aspect, a pest control device includes a housingincluding an inner chamber, a plurality of inlets opening into the innerchamber, and a plurality of inner walls dividing the inner chamber intoa plurality of channels. Each channel is sized to receive one or morepests. The pest control device includes any sensor shown and/ordescribed in this application and any controller shown and/or describedin this application. The sensor is attached to the housing.

In some embodiments, the pest control device may further include anairflow device configured to produce an airflow to draw air along theplurality of channels from the inner chamber to the sensor.

In some embodiments, the housing may include a first panel moveablerelative to a second panel to permit access to the inner chamber.

In some embodiments, the first panel may be pivotally coupled to thesecond panel.

In some embodiments, the housing may include an impermeable linerbetween an outer frame of the first panel and an outer frame of a secondpanel to minimize a loss of a targeted biochemical analyte through a gapbetween the outer frames.

In some embodiments, the impermeable liner may be an aluminized film.

In some embodiments, the first panel may include a base surface and theplurality of inner walls extend from the base surface.

In some embodiments, the first panel may include a ramp surfacepositioned outside of each inlet to guide pests into the correspondinginlet.

In some embodiments, the plurality of inner walls may include a pair ofguide walls positioned on each side of an inlet and a barrier wall. Eachguide wall may extend in a first direction and define a first channel ofthe plurality of channels. The barrier wall may be spaced apart from theends of the guide walls and extend in a second direction orthogonal tothe first direction.

In some embodiments, the barrier wall may include a first wall sectionextending in the second direction orthogonal to the first direction, asecond wall section extending from an end of the first wall section, anda third wall section extending from an opposite end of the first wallsection. The second wall section may extend parallel to the guide wallsand cooperate to define a second channel of the plurality of channels.The second wall section may extend parallel to the guide walls andcooperate to define a third channel of the plurality of channels.

In some embodiments, the first channel may be configured to direct theairflow in the first direction, and the second and third channels may beconfigured to direct the airflow in a third direction opposite the firstdirection.

In some embodiments, the barrier wall may be a first barrier wall, andthe plurality of inner walls may include a second barrier wall spacedapart from the end of the first barrier wall. The first barrier wall andthe second barrier wall may cooperate to define a fourth channelconfigured to direct airflow in the first direction.

In some embodiments, the fourth channel may be offset from the inlets ofhousing.

In some embodiments, the sensor may be positioned in the inner chamberof the housing.

In some embodiments, the airflow device may be positioned in the innerchamber.

In some embodiments, the pest control device may further include anexternal pre-concentrator.

In some embodiments, the pre-concentrator may include a heating elementto increase temperature in the inner chamber.

In some embodiments, the pre-concentrator may include a sheet that sorbsa targeted biochemical analyte.

In some embodiments, the sheet may be made of a woven or non-wovenfibrous material and include sorbent powder between fibers of a sheet offibrous material.

In some embodiments, the pre-concentrator may include multiple sheetsmade of a woven or non-woven fibrous material that sorb a targetedbiochemical analyte and include sorbent powder between two sheets of afibrous material.

In some embodiments, the pre-concentrator may include a tube thatextends from an inlet of the plurality of inlets to the sensor and sorbsa targeted biochemical analyte.

In some embodiments, the pre-concentrator may include a test chambersized to receive an amount of a targeted biochemical analyte.

In some embodiments, the pre-concentrator may include a surfaceconfigured to sorb a targeted biochemical analyte at a first temperatureand release the targeted biochemical analyte at a second temperature.

In some embodiments, the pest control device may further include aheating element operable to selectively adjust temperature in the innerchamber.

In some embodiments, the heating element may be operable increase thetemperature to exterminate pests in the inner chamber.

In some embodiments, the housing may be configured to be secured to abed.

In some embodiments, the pest control device may further include aheadboard of a bed, and the housing is configured to be secured to theheadboard of the bed.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The detailed description particularly refers to the following figures,in which:

FIG. 1 is a diagrammatic view of at least one embodiment of a pestcontrol system that includes a plurality of pest control devices;

FIG. 2 is a diagrammatic view of at least one embodiment of a pestcontrol device that can be included in the pest control system of FIG.1;

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of at least one embodiment of a detectionsensor of a pest control device that can be included in the pest controldevice of FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a diagrammatic view of at least one embodiment of a gateway ofthe pest control system of FIG. 1;

FIG. 5 is a simplified flow chart of a control routine of the pestcontrol system of FIG. 1;

FIGS. 6 and 7 are simplified flow charts of a first embodiment of acontrol routine of the pest control system of FIG. 1;

FIGS. 8A and 8B are simplified flow charts of a second embodiment of acontrol routine of the pest control system of FIG. 1;

FIG. 9 is an elevation view of an another embodiment of a pest controldevice attached to a headboard of a bed;

FIG. 10 is a top plan view of the pest control device of FIG. 9 in anopen configuration;

FIG. 11 is a perspective view of the pest control device of FIG. 9;

FIG. 12 is a top plan view of the pest control device of FIG. 9 in aclosed position;

FIG. 13 is a perspective view of an inlet opening of the pest controldevice of FIG. 9; and

FIG. 14 is a cross-sectional view of at least one embodiment of adetection sensor of a pest control device that includes a sensor celland a sensor coating coated on the surface of the sensor cell, whereinthe sensor coating includes a coating gel compound made of a polymer geland an agent that detects an analyte found in secretion bed bugs;

FIG. 15 is a graphical view that illustrates a mass change ofpolydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) coating gel compound caused by reactionsbetween an agent in the PDMS coating gel compound and the targetedbiochemical analyte present in the air surrounding the PDMS polymer gel;and

FIG. 16 is a graphical view that illustrates a mass change ofpolymethylphenylsiloxiane (PMPS) coating gel compound caused byreactions between an agent in the PMPS coating gel compound and thetargeted biochemical analyte present in the air surrounding the PMPSpolymer gel.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

While the concepts of the present disclosure are susceptible to variousmodifications and alternative forms, specific exemplary embodimentsthereof have been shown by way of example in the drawings and willherein be described in detail. It should be understood, however, thatthere is no intent to limit the concepts of the present disclosure tothe particular forms disclosed, but on the contrary, the intention is tocover all modifications, equivalents, and alternatives falling withinthe spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims.

Referring now to FIG. 1, a pest control system 100 for detecting apresence of pests is shown. The system 100 illustratively includes oneor more pest control device groups 102 that communicate with a centralpest data management server 104 via a network 106. The central pest datamanagement server 104 is further configured to communicate with one ormore client compute device 108 via a network 110 to transmit informationreceived from the pest control device group 102.

The pest control device group 102 includes a plurality of pest controldevices 108. Each pest control device 108 is configured to detect apresence of bed bugs and provides sensor data indicative of thedetection of the bed bugs, as described in more detail below. The pestcontrol device 108 transmits the sensor data to the central pest datamanagement server 104 via the network 106. To do so, in the illustrativeembodiment, the plurality of pest control devices 120 communicates witha gateway 122 to transmit sensor data to the network 106. It should beappreciated that in other embodiments or in other pest control groups102, one or more of the control devices 120 may communicate directlywith the network 106.

The gateway 122 may be embodied as any type of computation or computerdevice capable of wirelessly communicating with the pest control device120 and the network 106. In some embodiments, a range extender orrepeaters may be used to extend a range of communications between thepest control device 102 and the gateway 122. Additionally, the gateway122 may incorporate a two-way transceiver for communicating with thepest control device 120 and/or repeaters and the network 106. In theillustrative embodiment, the gateway device may incorporate digitalcellular technology to permit it to communicate with the network 106. Anexemplary system of repeaters and gateway devices is shown and describedin U.S. Pat. No. 8,026,822, which issued Sep. 8, 2009 and is expresslyincorporated herein by reference.

The network 106 may be embodied as any type of network capable offacilitating communications between the gateway 122 of the pest controldevice group 120 and the central pest data management server 104. In theillustrative embodiment, the network 106 may be embodied as a cellularnetwork or a wireless wide area network (WAN) using the cellularnetwork. It should be appreciated that, in some embodiments, the network106 may be embodied as, or otherwise include, a wireless local areanetwork (LAN), a wide area network (WAN), and/or a publicly-accessible,global network such as the Internet. As such, the network 106 mayinclude any number of additional devices, such as additional computers,routers, and switches, to facilitate communications thereacross. Inother embodiments, each of the pest control sensor 120 may include aseparate transmitter and receiver for transmitting and receiving datafrom the server 104 using the network 106. In still other embodiments,the gateway 122 may be configured to be hardwired to the network 106 viaa cable.

The server 104 includes communications middleware, application software140, and a database 142. It should be appreciated that the server 104may be located on-site with the pest control device 120 or off site. Theserver 104 may be embodied as any type of computation or computer devicecapable of performing the functions described herein including, withoutlimitation, a server, a computer, a multiprocessor system, arack-mounted server, a blade server, a laptop computer, a notebookcomputer, a tablet computer, a wearable computing device, a networkappliance, a web appliance, a distributed computing system, aprocessor-based system, and/or a consumer electronic device. It shouldbe appreciated that the server 104 may be embodied as a single computingdevice or a collection of distributed computing devices. In theillustrative embodiment, the server 104 provides various virtual/logicalcomponents to allow sensor data of each of the pest control devices 120received via the gateway 122 to be aggregated into database 142. Itshould be appreciated that the server 104 may communicate with allremote pest control device groups 102, evaluate resulting data, and takecorresponding actions using an Application Service Provider (ASP) model.Among other things, the server 104 collects the sensor data from thepest control device group 102, aggregates and processes sensor data, anddetermines what information needs to be forwarded to a customer ortechnician. In addition, the server 104 facilitates a data archive,notification and reporting process.

The client compute device 108 may be embodied as any type of computationor computer device capable of communicating with the server 104including, without limitation, a computer, a multiprocessor system, alaptop computer, a notebook computer, a tablet computer, a wearablecomputing device, a network appliance, a web appliance, a distributedcomputing system, a processor-based system, and/or a consumer electronicdevice. In the illustrative embodiment, the client compute device 108may selectively access the server 104 through the network 110. Theclient compute device 108 may include browser subsystem, spreadsheetinterface, email interface, Short Message Service (SMS) interface, andother interface subsystems.

The network 110 may be embodied as any type of network capable offacilitating communications between the client compute device 108 andthe central pest data management server 104. In the illustrativeembodiment, the network 110 may be embodied as a wireless local areanetwork (LAN) or a publicly-accessible, global network such as theInternet. However, it should be appreciated that, in some embodiments,the network 110 may be embodied as, or otherwise include, a cellularnetwork or a wireless wide area network (WAN). As such, the network 110may include any number of additional devices, such as additionalcomputers, routers, and switches, to facilitate communicationsthereacross.

Referring now to FIG. 2, a pest control device 120 for detecting apresence of pests is shown in greater detail. The pest control device120 includes a housing 202 defined by an exterior wall 204 and a topcover 206 enclosing an internal chamber 208. In the illustrativeembodiment, the internal chamber 208 houses a sensor 210, a controller212, a power source 214, and a wireless communication circuit 216. Insome embodiments, the internal chamber 208 may house a local indicator218.

The sensor 210 is configured to detect a targeted biochemical analytefound in the secretion of pests. For example, in the illustrativeembodiment, the sensor 210 is configured to detect a targetedbiochemical analyte found in the secretion of bed bugs. The sensor 210is coupled to a conduit 222 on each side of the sensor 210, whichextends through the exterior wall 204 at an inlet 224 and an outlet 226.The secretion of bed bugs enters the inlet 224 and flows into the sensor210 through the conduit 222. It should be appreciated that, in someembodiments, a fan 220 may be positioned in the internal chamber 208near the outlet 226 in order to draw air from the inlet 224 towards theoutlet 226 through the sensor 210.

The sensor 210 may be embodied as any type of device, circuit, orcomponent capable of performing the functions described herein. In theillustrative embodiment, the sensor 210 is embodied as a resonatorsensor such as a quartz crystal microbalance (QCM). As shown in FIG. 2,the sensor 210 includes a sensor cell or quartz crystal resonator 230such that the conduit 222 extends into the quartz crystal resonator 230to distribute air through the quartz crystal resonator 230. It should beappreciated that, in some embodiments, the sensor 210 may include aseries of multiple sensor cells or quartz crystal resonators 230 thatare arranged in parallel such that the conduit 222 is split intomultiple lines into multiple quartz crystal resonators 230 to distributeair through each of the quartz crystal resonator 230.

In use, the power source 214 provides power to the sensor 210 tooscillate the quartz crystal resonator 230, and the quartz crystalresonator 230 is configured to measure a frequency of oscillation. Thequartz crystal resonator 230 is further configured to generate sensordata that includes the frequency of the oscillating quartz crystalresonator 230, which is indicative of mass change on the surface of thequartz crystal resonator 230. It should be appreciated that thefrequency of oscillation of quartz crystal resonator 230 is generallydependent on the sensor mass detected on the surface of the quartzcrystal resonator 230. For example, the frequency of oscillationdecreases as the mass deposited on the surface of the quartz crystalresonator 230 increases. As such, a mass variation per unit area may bedetermined based on the sensor data received from the quartz crystalresonator 230. Accordingly, the controller 212 of the pest controldevice 120 may further determine the change in sensor mass based on thechange in frequency of oscillation. In some embodiments, the sensor 210may be a small-scale QCM sensor, such as an openQCM. It should beappreciated that, in some embodiments, the sensor 210 may be any type ofmass resonator that can detect the presence of the targeted biochemicalanalyte. In some embodiments, the sensor 210 may be embodied as acantilever sensor. In other embodiments, the sensor 210 may be embodiedas a cantilever sensor.

As shown in FIG. 3, the quartz crystal resonator 230 is coated with asensor coating 306 on the surface of the quartz crystal resonator 230.In the illustrative embodiment, the quartz crystal resonator 230includes a quartz crystal 302 and an electrode 304. It should beappreciated that the sensor coating 306 may be deposited on an entiresurface or a partial surface of the quartz crystal 302.

In the illustrative embodiment, the sensor coating 306 is made of anagent that reacts with the targeted biochemical analyte found in thesecretion of bed bugs. In the illustrative embodiment, the targetedbiochemical analyte is an unsaturated aldehyde compound, such as, forexample, trans-2-hexenal (T2H), trans-2-octenal (T2O),4-oxo-(E)-2-hexenal, and/or 4-oxo-(E)-2-octenal. In the illustrativeembodiment, dioctyl-cyclic thiol intermediate (dioctyl-CTI) is used toform the sensor coating 306 because it selectively reacts with T2H, T2O,4-oxo-(E)-2-hexenal, and/or 4-oxo-(E)-2-octenal. In the illustrativeembodiment, the dioctyl-CTI has the formula

wherein R¹ and R² are each octyl. It should be appreciated that, inother embodiments, the agent may be cyclic thiol intermediate (CTI) orother CTI-functional group that reacts with the targeted biochemicalanalyte. When it reacts with T2H, T2O, 4-oxo-(E)-2-hexenal, and/or4-oxo-(E)-2-octenal, dioctyl-CTI produces a product that has a highermolecular weight than the dioctyl-CTI alone. In the illustrativeembodiment, the product has the formula

wherein R¹ and R² are each octyl and R⁶ is pentyl. In some embodiments,dioctyl-CTI may be mixed with polymers to increase the viscosity ofdioctyl-CTI to create a uniform film of the dioctyl-CTI on the quartzcrystal resonator 230 and to prevent de-wetting of the dioctyl-CTIcompounds on the quartz crystal resonator 230. It should be appreciatedthat the frequency of oscillation of the quartz crystal resonator 230 ispartially dependent on the mass of the agent coated on the quartzcrystal resonator 230.

In some embodiments, the agent of the sensor coating 306 is a cyclicthiol is of the formula I

or a tautomer thereof, wherein

X is S or O;

Z¹ and Z² are each independently O or S;

R¹ is selected from the group consisting of hydrogen, C₁-C₁₂ alkyl,C₂-C₁₂ alkenyl, C₆-C₁₀ aryl, 5- to 7-membered heteroaryl, —OR⁵, —S R⁵,—(OC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(x)R⁵, —(SC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(y)R⁵, —(OC₁-C₄alkylene)_(x)(SC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(y)R⁵, —(SC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(y)(OC₁-C₄alkylene)_(x)R⁵, C₁-C₃ alkylene(OC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(x)R⁵, C₁-C₃alkylene(SC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(y)R⁵, C₁-C₃ alkylene(OC₁-C₄alkylene)_(x)(SC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(y)R⁵, and C₁-C₃ alkylene(SC₁-C₄alkylene)_(y)(OC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(x)R⁵;

R² is selected from the group consisting of hydrogen, C₃-C₁₂ alkyl,C₂-C₁₂ alkenyl, C₆-C₁₀ aryl, 5- to 7-membered heteroaryl, —OR⁵, —SR⁵,—(OC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(x)R⁵, —(SC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(y)R⁵, —(OC₁-C₄alkylene)_(x)(SC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(y)R⁵, —(SC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(y)(OC₁-C₄alkylene)_(x)R⁵, C₁-C₃ alkylene(OC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(x)R⁵, C₁-C₃alkylene(SC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(y)R⁵, C₁-C₃ alkylene(OC₁-C₄alkylene)_(x)(SC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(y)R⁵, and C₁-C₃ alkylene(SC₁-C₄alkylene)_(y)(OC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(x)R⁵;

R³, R^(3′), R⁴, and R^(4′) are each independently selected from thegroup consisting of hydrogen, C₁-C₈ alkyl, C₂-C₈ alkenyl, and C₆-C₁₀aryl;

R⁵ is selected from the group consisting of hydrogen, C₁-C₈ alkyl, C₂-C₈alkenyl, C₆-C₁₀ aryl, and a polymeric bulking group;

a is 0 or 1; and

x and y are each independently an integer from 1 to 10.

In some embodiments, X is S. In some embodiments, Z¹ is O. In someembodiments, Z² is O. In some embodiments, Z¹ and Z² are each O. In someembodiments, X is S, and Z¹ and Z² are each O.

In some embodiments, R¹ and R² are the same. In some embodiments, R¹ andR² are each independently C₄-C₁₀ alkyl. In some embodiments, R¹ and R²are each C₄-C₁₀ alkyl and are the same. In some embodiments, R¹ and R²are each independently C₆-C₈ alkyl. In some embodiments, R¹ and R² areeach C₆-C₈ alkyl and are the same. In some embodiments, R¹ and R² areeach octyl.

In some embodiments, at least one of R¹ and R² is coupled to thepolymeric bulking group. In some embodiments, at least one of R¹ and R²is hydrogen.

In some embodiments, the polymeric bulking group is selected from thegroup consisting of a silicone, a polyolefin, a polyamide, a polyester,a polycarbonate, a polyaramide, a polyurethane, a polystyrene, an epoxy,a rubber, a starch, a protein, a cellulose, an acrylate, an ABS polymer,a PEEK polymer, a polyol, polyether, polyetherpolyol, and a copolymer oftwo or more of the foregoing. In some embodiments, the polymeric bulkinggroup is a silicone. In some embodiments, the polymeric bulking group isa silsesquioxane. In some embodiments, the polymeric bulking group iscrosslinked.

As used herein, “polymeric bulking group” refers to oligomers andpolymers, which in some embodiments are silsesquioxanes. Examples ofsilsesquioxane compounds are described in Cordes, D., et al., Chem. Rev.2010, 11, 2081-2173, expressly incorporated herein by reference.

In some embodiments, R¹ is —(OC₁-C₄ alkyl)_(x)R⁵ or C₁-C₃ alkyl(OC₁-C₄alkyl)_(x)R⁵. In some embodiments, R¹ comprises —(OC₁-C₄alkyl)_(x)(SC₁-C₄ alkyl)_(y)R⁵ or C₁-C₃ alkyl(OC₁-C₄ alkyl)_(x)(SC₁-C₄alkyl)_(y)R⁵. In some embodiments, R¹ is of the formula—CH₂O(CH₂)₃S(CH₂)₃R⁵.

In some embodiments, the cyclic thiol has a weight of about 200 Da toabout 5000 Da. In some embodiments, the cyclic thiol has a weight ofabout 350 Da to about 5000 Da. In some embodiments, the cyclic thiol hasa weight of about 1000 Da to about 5000 Da.

In some embodiments, a is 1.

In some embodiments, R³, R^(3′), R⁴, and R^(4′) are each hydrogen.

In some embodiments, the cyclic thiol is of the formula

wherein R¹ and R² are each independently hexyl or octyl.

In some embodiments, the thiol group has a pKa of about 1 to about 4. Insome embodiments, the thiol group has a pKa of about 2.5.

In some embodiments, the cyclic thiol is part of a composition that isfree of metal thiol chelators. In some embodiments, the composition hasa pH of about 2 to about 8. In some embodiments, the composition has apH of about 2 to about 9. In some embodiments, the composition has a pHof about 7.

In some embodiments, when the agent of the sensor coating 306 reactswith the targeted biochemical analyte, a cyclic adduct is formed. Insome embodiments, the cyclic adduct is of the formula II

or a tautomer thereof, wherein

X is S or O;

Z¹ and Z² are each independently O or S;

R¹ is selected from the group consisting of hydrogen, C₁-C₁₂ alkyl,C₂-C₁₂ alkenyl, C₆-C₁₀ aryl, 5- to 7-membered heteroaryl, —OR⁵, —SR⁵,—(OC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(x)R⁵, —(SC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(y)R⁵, —(OC₁-C₄alkylene)_(x)(SC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(y)R⁵, —(SC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(y)(OC₁-C₄alkylene)_(x)R⁵, C₁-C₃ alkylene(OC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(x)R⁵, C₁-C₃alkylene(SC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(y)R⁵, C₁-C₃ alkylene(OC₁-C₄alkylene)_(x)(SC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(y)R⁵, and C₁-C₃ alkylene(SC₁-C₄alkylene)_(y)(OC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(x)R⁵;

R² is selected from the group consisting of hydrogen, C₁-C₁₂ alkyl,C₂-C₁₂ alkenyl, C₆-C₁₀ aryl, 5- to 7-membered heteroaryl, —OR⁵, —SR⁵,—(OC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(x)R⁵, —(SC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(y)R⁵, —(OC₁-C₄alkylene)_(x)(SC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(y)R⁵, —(SC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(y)(OC₁-C₄alkylene)_(x)R⁵, C₁-C₃ alkylene(OC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(x)R⁵, C₁-C₃alkylene(SC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(y)R⁵, C₁-C₃ alkylene(OC₁-C₄alkylene)_(x)(SC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(y)R⁵, and C₁-C₃ alkylene(SC₁-C₄alkylene)_(y)(OC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(x)R⁵;

R³, R^(3′), R⁴, and R^(4′) are each independently selected from thegroup consisting of hydrogen, C₁-C₈ alkyl, C₂-C₈ alkenyl, and C₆-C₁₀aryl;

R⁵ is selected from the group consisting of hydrogen, C₁-C₈ alkyl, C₂-C₈alkenyl, C₆-C₁₀ aryl, and a polymeric bulking group;

R⁶ is C₁-C₁₂ alkyl or oxo substituted C₁₂-C₁₂ alkyl;

a is 0 or 1; and

x and y are each independently an integer from 1 to 10.

In some embodiments, R⁶ is propyl or pentyl. In some embodiments, R⁶ ispentyl. In some embodiments, R⁶ is 1-oxopropyl or 1-oxopentyl.

In some embodiments, X is S. In some embodiments, Z¹ is O. In someembodiments, Z² is O. In some embodiments, Z¹ and Z² are each O. In someembodiments, X is S, and Z¹ and Z² are each O.

In some embodiments, R¹ and R² are the same. In some embodiments, R¹ andR² are each independently C₄-C₁₀ alkyl. In some embodiments, R¹ and R²are each C₄-C₁₀ alkyl and are the same. In some embodiments, R¹ and R²are each C₆-C₈ alkyl and are the same. In some embodiments, R¹ and R²are each octyl.

In some embodiments, at least one of R¹ and R² is coupled to thepolymeric bulking group. In some embodiments, at least one of R¹ and R²is hydrogen.

In some embodiments, the polymeric bulking group is selected from thegroup consisting of a silicone, a polyolefin, a polyamide, a polyester,a polycarbonate, a polyaramide, a polyurethane, a polystyrene, an epoxy,a rubber, a starch, a protein, a cellulose, an acrylate, an ABS polymer,a PEEK polymer, a polyol, polyether, polyetherpolyol, and a copolymer oftwo or more of the foregoing. In some embodiments, the polymeric bulkinggroup is a silicone. In some embodiments, the polymeric bulking group isa silsesquioxane. In some embodiments, the polymeric bulking group iscrosslinked.

In some embodiments, R¹ is —(OC₁-C₄ alkyl)_(x)R⁵ or C₁-C₃ alkyl(OC₁-C₄alkyl)_(x)R⁵. In some embodiments, R¹ comprises —(OC₁-C₄alkyl)_(x)(SC₁-C₄ alkyl)_(y)R⁵ or C₁-C₃ alkyl(OC₁-C₄ alkyl)_(x)(SC₁-C₄alkyl)_(y)R⁵. In some embodiments, R¹ is of the formula—CH₂O(CH₂)₃S(CH₂)₃R⁵.

In some embodiments, the cyclic adduct has a weight of about 200 Da toabout 5000 Da. In some embodiments, the cyclic adduct has a weight ofabout 350 Da to about 5000 Da. In some embodiments, the cyclic adducthas a weight of about 1000 Da to about 5000 Da.

In some embodiments, a is 1.

In some embodiments, R³, R^(3′), R⁴, and R^(4′) are each hydrogen.

In some embodiments, the cyclic adduct is of the formula

wherein R¹ and R² are each independently hexyl or octyl. In someembodiments, R⁶ is propyl or pentyl. In some embodiments, R⁶ is pentyl.In some embodiments, R⁶ is 1-oxopropyl or 1-oxopentyl.

In some embodiments, the thiol group has a pKa of about 1 to about 4. Insome embodiments, the thiol group has a pKa of about 2.5.

In some embodiments, the cyclic adduct is part of a composition that isfree of metal thiol chelators. In some embodiments, the composition hasa pH of about 2 to about 8. In some embodiments, the composition has apH of about 2 to about 9. In some embodiments, the composition has a pHof about 7.

In some embodiments, the agent of the sensor coating 306 is a thiol isof the formula III

or a tautomer thereof, wherein

X is S or O;

Z¹ and Z² are each independently O or S;

R¹ is selected from the group consisting of hydrogen, C₁-C₁₂ alkyl,C₂-C₁₂ alkenyl, C₆-C₁₀ aryl, 5- to 7-membered heteroaryl, —OR⁵, —SR^(S),—(OC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(x)R⁵, —(SC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(y)R⁵, —(OC₁-C₄alkylene)_(x)(SC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(y)R⁵, —(SC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(y)(OC₁-C₄alkylene)_(x)R⁵, C₁-C₃ alkylene(OC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(x)R⁵, C₁-C₃alkylene(SC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(y)R⁵, C₁-C₃ alkylene(OC₁-C₄alkylene)_(x)(SC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(y)R⁵, and C₁-C₃ alkylene(SC₁-C₄alkylene)_(y)(OC₁-C₄ alkylene)x_(y)R⁵;

R² is selected from the group consisting of C₃-C₁₂ alkyl, C₂-C₁₂alkenyl, C₆-C_(10 aryl,) 5- to 7-membered heteroaryl, —OR⁵, —SR⁵,—(OC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(x)R⁵, —(SC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(y)R⁵, —(OC₁-C₄alkylene)_(x)(SC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(y)R⁵, (SC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(y)(OC₁-C₄alkylene)_(x)R⁵, C₁-C₃ alkylene(OC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(x)R⁵, C₁-C₃alkylene(SC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(y)R⁵, C₁-C₃ alkylene(OC₁-C₄alkylene)_(x)(SC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(y)R⁵, and C₁-C₃ alkylene(SC₁-C₄alkylene)_(y)(OC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(x)R⁵;

R⁵ is selected from the group consisting of hydrogen, C₁-C₈ alkyl, C₂-C₈alkenyl, C₆-C₁₀ aryl, and a polymeric bulking group;

a is 0 or 1; and

x and y are each independently an integer from 1 to 10.

In some embodiments, X is S. In some embodiments, Z¹ is O. In someembodiments, Z² is O. In some embodiments, Z¹ and Z² are each O. In someembodiments, X is S, and Z¹ and Z² are each O.

In some embodiments, R¹ and R² are the same. In some embodiments, R¹ andR² are each independently C₄-C₁₀ alkyl. In some embodiments, R¹ and R²are each C₄-C₁₀ alkyl and are the same. In some embodiments, R¹ and R²are each independently C₆-C₈ alkyl In some embodiments, R¹ and R² areeach C₆-C₈ alkyl and are the same. In some embodiments, R¹ and R² areeach octyl.

In some embodiments, at least one of R¹ and R² is coupled to thepolymeric bulking group. In some embodiments, at least one of R¹ and R²is hydrogen.

In some embodiments, the polymeric bulking group is selected from thegroup consisting of a silicone, a polyolefin, a polyamide, a polyester,a polycarbonate, a polyaramide, a polyurethane, a polystyrene, an epoxy,a rubber, a starch, a protein, a cellulose, an acrylate, an ABS polymer,a PEEK polymer, a polyol, polyether, polyetherpolyol, and a copolymer oftwo or more of the foregoing. In some embodiments, the polymeric bulkinggroup is a silicone. In some embodiments, the polymeric bulking group isa silsesquioxane. In some embodiments, the polymeric bulking group iscrosslinked.

In some embodiments, R¹ is —(OC₁-C₄ alkyl)_(x)R⁵ or C₁-C₃ alkyl(OC₁-C₄alkyl)_(x)R⁵. In some embodiments, R¹ comprises —(OC₁-C₄alkyl)_(x)(SC₁-C₄ alkyl) _(y)R⁵ or C₁-C₃ alkyl(OC₁-C₄ alkyl)_(x)(SC₁-C₄alkyl)_(y)R⁵. In some embodiments, R¹ is of the formula—CH₂O(CH₂)₃S(CH₂)₃R⁵.

In some embodiments, the thiol has a weight of about 200 Da to about5000 Da. In some embodiments, the thiol has a weight of about 350 Da toabout 5000 Da. In some embodiments, the thiol has a weight of about 1000Da to about 5000 Da.

In some embodiments, a is 1.

In some embodiments, the thiol group has a pKa of about 1 to about 4. Insome embodiments, the thiol group has a pKa of about 2.5.

In some embodiments, the thiol is part of a composition that is free ofmetal thiol chelators. In some embodiments, the composition has a pH ofabout 2 to about 8. In some embodiments, the composition has a pH ofabout 2 to about 9. In some embodiments, the composition has a pH ofabout 7.

In some embodiments, when the agent of the sensor coating 306 reactswith the targeted biochemical analyte, an adduct is formed. In someembodiments, the adduct is of the formula II

or a tautomer thereof, wherein

X is S or O;

Z¹ and Z² are each independently O or S;

R¹ is selected from the group consisting of hydrogen, C₁-C₁₂ alkyl,C₂-C₁₂ alkenyl, C₆-C₁₀ aryl, 5- to 7-membered heteroaryl, —OR⁵, —SR⁵,—(OC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(x)R⁵, —(SC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(y)R⁵, —(OC₁-C₄alkylene)_(x)(SC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(y)R⁵, —(SC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(y)(OC₁-C₄alkylene)_(x)R⁵, C₁-C₃ alkylene(OC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(x)R⁵, C₁-C₃alkylene(SC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(y)R⁵, C₁-C₃ alkylene(OC₁-C₄alkylene)_(x)(SC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(y)R⁵, and C₁-C₃ alkylene(SC₁-C₄alkylene)_(y)(OC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(x)R⁵;

R² is selected from the group consisting of hydrogen, C₁-C₁₂ alkyl,C₂-C₁₂ alkenyl, C₆-C₁₀ aryl, 5- to 7-membered heteroaryl, —OR⁵, —SR⁵,—(OC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(x)R⁵, —(SC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(y)R⁵, —(OC₁-C₄alkylene)_(x)(SC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(y)R⁵, —(SC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(y)(OC₁-C₄alkylene)_(x)R⁵, C₁-C₃ alkylene(OC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(x)R⁵, C₁-C₃alkylene(SC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(y)R⁵, C₁-C₃ alkylene(OC₁-C₄alkylene)_(x)(SC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(y)R⁵, and C₁-C₃ alkylene(SC₁-C₄alkylene)_(y)(OC₁-C₄ alkylene)_(x)R⁵;

R⁵ is selected from the group consisting of hydrogen, C₁-C₈ alkyl, C₂-C₈alkenyl, C₆-C₁₀ aryl, and a polymeric bulking group;

R⁶ is C₁-C₁₂ alkyl or oxo substituted C₁-C₁₂ alkyl;

a is 0 or 1; and

x and y are each independently an integer from 1 to 10.

In some embodiments, R⁶ is propyl or pentyl. In some embodiments, R⁶ ispentyl. In some embodiments, R⁶ is 1-oxopropyl or 1-oxopentyl.

In some embodiments, X is S. In some embodiments, Z¹ is O. In someembodiments, Z² is O. In some embodiments, Z¹ and Z² are each O. In someembodiments, X is S, and Z¹ and Z² are each O.

In some embodiments, R¹ and R² are the same. In some embodiments, R¹ andR² are each independently C₄-C₁₀ alkyl. In some embodiments, R¹ and R²are each C₄-C₁₀ alkyl and are the same. In some embodiments, R¹ and R²are each independently C₆-C₈ alkyl. In some embodiments, R¹ and R² areeach C₆-C₈ alkyl and are the same. In some embodiments, R¹ and R² areeach octyl.

In some embodiments, at least one of R¹ and R² is coupled to thepolymeric bulking group. In some embodiments, at least one of R¹ and R²is hydrogen.

In some embodiments, the polymeric bulking group is selected from thegroup consisting of a silicone, a polyolefin, a polyamide, a polyester,a polycarbonate, a polyaramide, a polyurethane, a polystyrene, an epoxy,a rubber, a starch, a protein, a cellulose, an acrylate, an ABS polymer,a PEEK polymer, a polyol, polyether, polyetherpolyol, and a copolymer oftwo or more of the foregoing. In some embodiments, the polymeric bulkinggroup is a silicone. In some embodiments, the polymeric bulking group isa silsesquioxane. In some embodiments, the polymeric bulking group iscrosslinked.

In some embodiments, R¹ is —(OC₁-C₄ alkyl)_(x)R⁵ or C₁-C₃ alkyl(OC₁-C₄alkyl)_(x)R⁵. In some embodiments, R¹ comprises —(OC₁-C₄alkyl)_(x)(SC₁-C₄ alkyl)_(y)R⁵ or C₁-C₃ alkyl(OC₁-C₄ alkyl)_(x)(SC₁-C₄alkyl)_(y)R⁵. In some embodiments, R¹ is of the formula—CH₂O(CH₂)₃S(CH₂)₃R⁵.

In some embodiments, the adduct has a weight of about 200 Da to about5000 Da. In some embodiments, the adduct has a weight of about 350 Da toabout 5000 Da. In some embodiments, the adduct has a weight of about1000 Da to about 5000 Da.

In some embodiments, a is 1.

As described above, the agent of the sensor coating 306 is configured toreact with the targeted biochemical analyte to produce a product thathas a higher molecular weight. In use, the initial increase in sensormass detected on the surface of the quartz crystal resonator 230 isdetermined based on the sensor data. As discussed above, in theillustrative embodiment, the sensor data includes the frequency of theoscillating quartz crystal resonator 230, and the change in frequency isgenerally proportional to the change in sensor mass. Accordingly, theinitial increase in sensor mass is determined by measuring the change infrequency of the oscillating quartz crystal resonator 230 as discussedin detail below.

In some embodiments, the initial increase in sensor mass may also bedetermined based on an absolute mass change. To do so, a current surfacemass and an initial surface mass on the quartz crystal resonator 230prior to the reaction may be compared to measure the initial increase insensor mass. It should be appreciated that the detection of a subsequentincrease in sensor mass is determined by comparing the current surfacemass and a subsequent surface mass on the quartz crystal resonator 230.

The mass change generally correlates to the concentration of targetedbiochemical analyte detected on the quartz crystal resonator 230.However, it should be appreciated that the amount of the agent availableto react with the targeted biochemical analyte may influence thereaction rate, thereby affecting the mass change and/or the mass changerate detected on the surface of the quartz crystal resonator 230. Suchmass increase associated with the reaction is detected by the controller212 of the pest control device 102, which is discussed in detail inFIGS. 6 and 8.

In some embodiments, the mass change rate may be influenced by adetection response time of the sensor 210. The detection response timemay increase if an accumulation of the targeted biochemical analyte inair surrounding the sensor 210 is required in order to generate a signalor sensor data that amounts to a measureable change indicative of apresence of bed bugs. In other words, at low concentration of thetargeted biochemical analyte, the mass change of the quartz crystalresonator 230 resulted from the reaction may not be sufficient until thetargeted biochemical analyte is accumulated to a predetermined amount.In some embodiments, a pre-concentrator may be used to reach a minimumpredetermined amount of the targeted biochemical analyte such that thesensor 210 can immediately detect a low concentration of the targetedbiochemical analyte.

It should be noted that the amount of the agent of the sensor coating306 decreases as the agent reacts with the targeted biochemical analyte.It should be appreciated that, in some embodiments, the reaction isreversible from the product to the agent based on heat. In suchembodiments, the pest control device 120 further includes a heatingelement (not shown). When the amount of the agent of the sensor coating306 reaches a threshold level, the pest control device 120 applies heatto the quartz crystal resonator 230 to reverse the reaction and recoverthe agent of the sensor coating 306. In some embodiments, the pestcontrol device 120 may generate a local or remote alert indicating thatthe sensor 210 requires maintenance to replenish the agent of the sensorcoating 306 or replace the quartz crystal resonator 230 or the sensor210.

Referring back to FIG. 2, the controller 212 may be embodied as any typeof controller, circuit, or component capable of performing the functionsdescribed herein. The controller 212 is configured to determine thepresence of bed bugs by analyzing sensor data produced by the sensor210. Specifically, in the illustrative embodiment, the quartz crystalresonator 230 of the sensor 210 generates sensor data. The sensor dataincludes, among other things, mass changes on the surface of the quartzcrystal resonator 230. It should be appreciate that the mass change onthe quartz crystal resonator 230 indicates that the agent of the sensorcoating 306 of the quartz crystal resonator 230 is being converted to aproduct that has a different molecular weight, and the mass change rateis generally proportional to the rate of reactions to convert the agentinto the product.

As discussed above, in the illustrative embodiment, the productresulting from the reaction between the agent (e.g., dioctyl-CTI) andthe targeted biochemical analyte, such as T2H, T2O, 4-oxo-(E)-2-hexenal,and/or 4-oxo-(E)-2-octenal, has a higher molecular weight compared tothe molecular weight of the dioctyl-CTI. Accordingly, the controller 212determines whether the mass increase exceeds a predefined thresholdrate. The predefined threshold rate is a base mass change rate in thepresence of bed bugs. For example, in some embodiments, the base masschange may be a minimum mass change rate in the presence of bed bugs. Inother embodiments, the base mass change may be a minimum mass changerate plus some additional safety factor to avoid false positives orunwanted detections. For example, in some cases, environmental factors,such as temperature and humidity in air surrounding the sensor 210, mayaffect the accuracy of the mass change rate detected and result insensor drift. The inclusion of some additional safety factors maycompensate for unpredicted environmental effects to decrease unwanteddetections due to sensor drift.

As discussed above, the initial increase in sensor mass detected on thesurface of the quartz crystal resonator 230 is determined by measuringthe change in frequency of the oscillating quartz crystal resonator 230.In some embodiments, as discussed above, the initial increase in sensormass may also be determined based on an absolute mass change bycomparing a current mass on the quartz crystal resonator 230 and aninitial mass on the quartz crystal resonator 230 prior to the reaction.It should be appreciated that the detection of a subsequent massincrease is determined by comparing the current mass of the quartzcrystal resonator 230 and a subsequent mass of the quartz crystalresonator 230. It should be appreciated that, in some embodiments, thesensor data may be processed at the server 104.

In some embodiments, the sensor 210 may detect the presence of bed bugsby detecting the decrease in sensor mass upon heating the quartz crystalresonator 230. To do so, the sensor 210 may determine the mass detectedon the surface of the quartz crystal resonator 230 before and afterapplying the heat to the quartz crystal resonator 230 and determinewhether a change in mass exceeds a predefined threshold. As discussedabove, when the heat is applied to the quartz crystal resonator 230, theproduct resulted from the reaction between the agent and the targetedbiochemical analyte releases the targeted biochemical analyte andresults in decrease in sensor mass to detect the presence of bed bugs

In some embodiments, the sensor 210 may determine both the mass gain andmass loss to eliminate false positives or unwanted detections. Forexample, in some cases, environmental factors, such as dust or otherparticles in air surrounding the sensor 210 may interact with the agentof the sensor coating 306 and increase the sensor mass detected on thesurface of the quartz crystal resonator 230. In such embodiments, thesensor 210 may identify false positives or unwanted detections if theincrease in the sensor mass prior to the heating exceeds a firstpredefined threshold while the decrease in the sensor mass after theheating does not exceed a second predefined threshold.

The power source 214 may be embodied as any type of device, circuit, orcomponent capable of providing electrical power to the components of thepest control device 120, such as the controller 212, the sensor 210, thewireless communication circuit 216, the local indicator 218, or the fan220 as needed. In some embodiments, the power source 214 may beelectrochemical cells or a battery.

The wireless communication circuit 216 may be embodied as any type ofdevice, circuit, or component capable of enabling communications betweenthe pest control device 104 and the gateway 122. Each pest controldevice 120 is configured to periodically or continually communicate withthe gateway 122 to transmit the sensor data to the server 104 using thenetwork 106. For example, the sensor data may include, among otherthings, notifications such as a detection of bed bug and/or anindication that the sensor requires a maintenance. To do so, thewireless communication circuit 216 may be configured to use any one ormore communication technologies (e.g., wireless or wired communications)and associated protocols (e.g., Ethernet, Bluetooth®, WiMAX, LTE, 5G,etc.) to effect such communication.

The local indicator 218 may be embodied as any type of indicator that iscapable of generating an alert to notify a human operator or atechnician. For example, the local indicator 218 may be embodied as avisual and/or audible indicator. In some embodiments, the visualindicator 218 may include a light emitting diode (LED), fluorescent,incandescent, and/or neon type light source. The audible indicator maygenerate an alert sound to notify the technician. In the illustrativeembodiment, the local indicator 218 generates an alert indicative of apresence or absence of bed bugs. For example, in some embodiments, theLED light indicator 218 may be energized to project a colored light,change color, or change from a non-blinking light to a blinking light toindicate the presence of bed bugs. In other embodiments, the audiblelocal indicator 218 may generate sound to indicate the presence of bedbugs.

In some embodiments, the local indicator 218 may also output a signalindicative of whether the sensor 230 requires maintenance. For example,the local alert may indicate a malfunction of the sensor 230. In someembodiments, the local alert may indicate the depletion of the agent ofthe sensor 210. In such embodiments, the LED light indicator 218 may beenergized to project a colored light, change color, or change from anon-blinking light to a blinking light to indicate the presence of bedbugs. It should be appreciated that the color of the LED light indicator218 indicating the sensor maintenance may be different from the color ofthe LED light indicator 218 indicating the bed bug detection. In someembodiments, the visual indicator may be used to indicate the presenceof bed bugs and an audible indicator may be used to indicate that thesensor 210 requires maintenance or vice versa.

It should be appreciated that, in some embodiments, the pest controldevice 120 may further include a handle (not shown) on a housing member202 to provide a grip to a human operator or a technician. Thetechnician may grip the handle of the pest control device 120 andmanually move the pest control device 120 to identify a localized areaof the targeted biochemical analyte indicative of a presence of bedbugs.

Referring now to FIG. 4, the gateway 122 includes a controller 402 witha memory 404, a wireless network interface 406 with an antenna 408, anda modem 412 with an antenna 414. The controller 402 may be embodied asany type of controller, circuit, or component capable of performing thefunctions described herein including, without limitation, a computer, amultiprocessor system, a laptop computer, a notebook computer, a tabletcomputer, a wearable computing device, a network appliance, a webappliance, a distributed computing system, a processor-based system,and/or a consumer electronic device. In some embodiments, the controller402 may be of a microcontroller type, such as model no. C805F120provided by Cygnal Technologies.

The memory 404 may be embodied as any type of volatile or non-volatilememory or data storage capable of performing the functions describedherein. In operation, the memory 404 may store various data and softwareused during operation of the gateway 122 such as programs, libraries,and drivers. In some embodiments, the memory 404 may temporarily storeand aggregate sensor data received from the pest control devices 120prior to transmitting the sensor data to the server 104 over the network106.

In the illustrative embodiment, the modem 412 with the antenna 414 isconfigured to interface with a cellular network or a wireless WANnetwork 106 to communicate with network 106. In some embodiments, themodem 408 may utilize General Packet Radio Service (GPRS) through aGlobal System for Mobile communications (GSM) protocol. In someembodiments, the model 408 may be of a hardwired dial-up and/or coaxialcable type.

In the illustrative embodiment, the wireless network interface 406 withthe antenna 408 is configured to interface with a wireless communicationnetwork as defined by a corresponding pest control group 102 tocommunicate with the pest control devices 120. In some embodiments, thewireless communication network may be a local area network (LAN) type.

Referring now to FIG. 5, in use, the pest control system 100 may executea routine 500 for detecting a presence of bed bugs. The routine 500begins with block 502 in which the communication components of pestcontrol system 100 are initialized to form new communication paths fromeach of the pest control device 120 to the server 104 or the clientcompute device 108. For example, the wireless network interface 406 andthe modem 412 of the gateway 122 may be initialized to establish linksto networks.

In block 504, each of the pest control device 120 obtains and analyzesdata generated by the sensor 210 of the pest control device 120. Asdescribed above, in the illustrative embodiment, the sensor 210 includesa quartz crystal resonator 230 that is configured to output sensor data,and a surface of the quartz crystal resonator 230 has the sensor coating306, which includes the agent. As discussed above, the agent of thesensor coating 306 selectively reacts with the targeted biochemicalanalyte secreted by pests. During the reaction, the agent is convertedto a product with a different molecular weight compared to the molecularweight of the agent. As discussed above, the quartz crystal resonator230 outputs sensor data that includes a frequency of oscillation, whichis indicative of the mass changes on the surface of the quartz crystalresonator 230. As discussed above, the change in frequency is generallyproportional to the change in sensor mass deposited on the surface ofthe quartz crystal resonator 230. Accordingly, the controller 212 of thepest control device 120 analyzes the sensor data of the quartz crystalresonator 230 and determines a presence of pests based on a level ofmass change, which is discussed in detail in FIGS. 6 and 7.

In some embodiments, the sensor data may include a status of the sensor210. For example, the status of the sensor 210 may include an amount ofremaining agent of the sensor coating 306. As discussed above, thefrequency of oscillation of the quartz crystal resonator 230 partiallydepends on the mass of the agent coated on the quartz crystal resonator230. As such, the remaining agent coated on the quartz crystal resonator230 may be estimated based on the frequency of oscillation of the quartzcrystal resonator 230. In other embodiments, each of the pest controldevice 120 may determine an amount of the agent that has been convertedto the product, thereby determine the amount of the agent remaining inthe sensor coating 306. It should be appreciated that having asufficient amount of the agent of the sensor coating 306 is necessaryfor accurate detection of the presence of pests.

In block 506, the sensor data of the pest control device 120 istransmitted to the pest data management server 104. To do so, the pestcontrol device 120 transmits the sensor data to the gateway 122. Thegateway 122 subsequently transmits the sensor data to the server 104 viathe network 106.

In block 508, the server 104 outputs the sensor data. In someembodiments, the server 104 may perform corresponding actions using theapplication 140. For example, the application 140 includes anotifications and alarm service that can dispatch alerts to the clientcompute device 108 based on conditions set within the database 142.

Referring now to FIGS. 6 and 7, in use, the controller 212 of the pestcontrol device 120 may execute a routine 600 for detecting a presence ofbed bugs by determining rate of changes in sensor mass and a routine 700for determining whether to issue an alert notification. The routine 600begins with block 602 in which the controller 212 determines whether thesensor 210 of the pest control device 120 is active. If the controller212 determines that the sensor 210 is not active, the routine 600 loopsback to block 602 to continue monitoring for an active sensor 210. If,however, the controller 212 determines that the sensor 210 is active,the routine 600 advances to block 604.

In block 604, the controller 212 receives sensor data from the sensor210. In the illustrative embodiment, the sensor or quartz crystalmicrobalance 210 generates sensor data indicative of mass changes on thesurface of the quartz crystal resonator 230 of the quartz crystalmicrobalance 210. As described above, the sensor data includes thefrequency of oscillation of quartz crystal resonator 230, which isgenerally proportional to the change in sensor mass. Based on thereceived sensor data, in block 606, the controller 212 determines a rateof change in sensor mass (i.e., the mass change rate on the surface ofthe quartz crystal resonator 230).

In block 608, the controller 212 determines whether the determined rateof change in the sensor mass exceeds a predefined threshold rate. Itshould be appreciated that the predefined threshold rate is the basemass change rate in the presence of bed bugs and is used to reduce falsepositive detection of bed bugs. As discussed above, the base mass changerate is a minimum mass change rate in the presence of bed bugs. In someembodiments, the base mass change may be a minimum mass change rate plussome additional safety factor to avoid false positives or unwanteddetections.

If the controller 212 determines that the rate of change does notexceeds the predefined threshold rate, the controller 212 determinesthat no bed bug is detected, and the routine 600 skips ahead skips toblock 710 of the routine 700 shown in FIG. 7, which is described indetail below. If, however, the controller 212 determines that the rateof change exceeds the predefined threshold rate, the routine 600advances to block 610. In block 610, the controller 212 activates orstarts a timer when the rate of change in sensor mass exceeds thepredefined threshold rate. It should be appreciated that, in someembodiments, the controller 212 may record a start time at which therate of change in sensor mass exceeded the predefined threshold rate. Inother words, the start time is the time at which the pest control device108 detected a presence of bed bugs.

To further reduce false positive detection of bed bugs, the controller212 determines how long the mass change rate has exceeded the predefinedthreshold rate. To do so, the controller 212 receives subsequent sensordata from the sensor 210 in block 612. Based on the subsequent sensordata, the controller 212 determines a rate of change in sensor mass inblock 614.

In block 616, the controller 212 determines whether the rate of changebased on the subsequent sensor data still exceeds the predefinedthreshold rate. If the controller 212 determines that the rate of changeexceeds the predefined threshold rate, the routine 600 loops back toblock 612 to continue to receive subsequent sensor data. If, however,the controller 212 determines that the rate of change does not exceedthe predefined threshold rate, the routine 600 advances to block 618.

In block 618, the controller 212 stops the timer. It should beappreciated that, in some embodiments, the controller 212 records an endtime at which the rate of change exceeded the predefined threshold rate.In other words, the end time is the time at which the pest controldevice 108 no longer detects a presence of bed bugs. The routine 600subsequently proceeds to block 702 of the routine 700 shown in FIG. 7 todetermine whether to issue an alert notification.

In block 702 shown in FIG. 7, the controller 212 determines a timeinterval measured by the timer. It should be appreciated that thedetermined time interval indicates the time period that the bed bugshave been detected.

In block 704, the controller 212 determines whether the time interval isgreater than a predefined time period. As discussed above, thepredefined time period is used to reduce false positive detection. Ifthe time interval is less than the predefined time period, thecontroller 212 determines that such detection is likely be a falsepositive, and the routine 700 skips ahead to block 708 in which thecontroller 212 records the time interval. The false positive may be dueto, for example, unexpected environmental factors, unexpectedmalfunctioning of the device, and/or human error.

If, however, the controller 212 determines that the time interval isgreater than the predefined time period, the routine 700 advances toblock 706. In block 706, the controller 212 issues a bed bug detectionalert notification. In some embodiments, the controller 212 may issuethe local bed bug detection alert notification via the local indicator218. In other embodiments, the controller 212 may issue the bed bugdetection alert notification to the server 104. In block 708, thecontroller 212 records the time interval.

Subsequent to detecting the presence of bed bugs, the controller 212further determine an agent level of the sensor coating 306 on the quartzcrystal resonator 230 of the sensor 210 to determine when to replenishthe sensor coating 306 on the quartz crystal resonator 230 or replacethe quartz crystal resonator 230 and/or the sensor 210. It should beappreciated that, in some embodiments, the controller 212 maysimultaneously determine the agent level and a presence of bed bug.

In block 710, the controller 212 determines a level of the agent of thesensor coating 306 on the quartz crystal resonator 230. To do so, insome embodiments, in block 712, the controller 212 may determine theagent level based on the sensor data. As discussed above, the frequencyof oscillation of the quartz crystal resonator 230 is partiallydependent on the mass of the agent coated on the quartz crystalresonator 230. As such, the controller 212 may estimate the amount ofremaining agent based on the frequency of oscillation of thecorresponding quartz crystal resonator 230.

In some embodiments, in block 714, the controller 212 may determine theagent level by analyzing the rate of changes in sensor mass. Forexample, the controller 212 determines the rate of changes in the sensormass over a predetermined period of time and calculate a total masschange over the predetermined period of time. It should be appreciatedthat the total mass change is a weight difference between a weight ofthe product produced over the predetermined period of time and a weightof agent that reacted with the targeted biochemical analyte to producethe product. The controller 212 may calculate the amount of the agentthat has been consumed in the reaction from the total mass change.Accordingly, the controller 212 may determine the amount of agentremaining on the quartz crystal resonator 230 available to react withthe targeted biochemical analyte.

In some embodiments, in block 716, the controller 212 may determine theagent level of the sensor 210 by comparing the current sensor mass to atheoretical sensor mass. The theoretical sensor mass is a sensor massthat is expected if all amount of the agent of the sensor coating 306 isconverted to the product.

In block 718, the controller 212 determines whether the agent level isbelow a threshold level. The threshold level is set based on a minimumamount of agent in the sensor coating 306 required to react with thetargeted biochemical analyte. In other words, if the agent level isbelow the threshold level, the agent is depleted, and no furtherreaction can occur.

If so, the routine 700 advances to block 720 in which the controller 212issues a notification to replace the sensor 210. In some embodiments,the controller 212 may issue the local replacement notification via thelocal indicator 218. In other embodiments, the controller 212 may issuethe notification to the server 104.

If, however, the controller 212 determines that the agent level ishigher than the threshold level, the routine 700 skips block 720. Theroutine 700 may loop back to block 604 of the routine 600 in FIG. 6 tocontinue receiving sensor data to determine the presence of bed bugs andthe agent level of the sensor 210.

Referring now to FIGS. 8A and 8B, in use, the controller 212 of the pestcontrol device 120 may execute an alternative routine 800 alternative tothe routine 600 for detecting a presence of bed bugs by comparing therate of change in frequency over time. The routine 800 begins with block802 in which the controller 212 determines whether the sensor 210 of thepest control device 120 is active. If the controller 212 determines thatthe sensor 210 is not active, the routine 800 loops back to block 802 tocontinue monitoring for an active sensor 210. If, however, thecontroller 212 determines that the sensor 210 is active, the routine 800advances to block 804.

In block 804, the controller 212 receives first sensor data andsubsequently receives second sensor data after a predefined time. Asdiscussed above, in the illustrative embodiment, the sensor dataincludes the frequency of the oscillating quartz crystal resonator 230.Accordingly, in block 806, the controller 212 determines a first slopeof frequency change (i.e., a rate of change in frequency) during thepredefined time based on the first and second sensor data. However, itshould be appreciated that in other embodiments, the controller 212determines a first slope of any signal change based on the first andsecond sensor data.

Subsequently, in block 808, the controller 212 further receivessubsequent sensor data after the predefined time. The controller 212then determines a second slope of frequency change based on the secondand subsequent sensor data in block 810.

In block 812, the controller 212 determines whether the second slope isdifferent from the first slope. In other words, the controller 212compares the first and second rate of changes in frequency. As discussedabove, the change in frequency is indicative of the change in sensormass. It should be noted, however, that the sensitivity and/or accuracyof the sensor detection may decrease due to sensor drift over time andmay prevent the controller 212 from detecting the presence of low-leveltargeted biochemical analyte. As such, by calculating the difference inthe rates of frequency change to determine the presence of bed bugs, thecontroller 212 may minimize the influence of possible sensor drift whenmonitoring for long periods of time.

If the controller 212 determines that the second slope is not differentfrom the first slope (i.e., the rate of change in frequency has notchanged), the controller 212 determines that no bed bug is detected, andthe routine 800 skips to block 710 of the routine 700 shown in FIG. 7.

If, however, the controller 212 determines that the second slope isdifferent from the first slope, the routine 800 advances to block 814shown in FIG. 8B which the controller 212 activates a timer to indicatea start time at which the controller 212 detected an abrupt change infrequency. In other words, the start time is the time at which the pestcontrol device 108 detected a presence of bed bugs.

To further reduce false positive detection of bed bugs, the controller212 determines how long the rate of change in frequency (i.e., the rateof change in sensor mass) is changing. To do so, the controller 212receives subsequent sensor data from the sensor 210 in block 612. Basedon the subsequent sensor data, the controller 212 determines asubsequent slope of frequency change in block 818.

In block 820, the controller 212 determines whether the subsequent slopeis different from a previous slope. It should be appreciated that theprevious slope is a slope that was determined immediately prior to thesubsequent slope. If the controller 212 determines that the slope haschanged, the routine 800 loops back to block 816 to continue to receivesubsequent sensor data. If, however, the controller 212 determines thatthe slope has not changed, the routine 800 advances to block 822.

In block 822, the controller 212 stops the timer to indicate an end timeat which the controller 212 detected no change in frequency. In otherwords, the end time is the time at which the pest control device 108 nolonger detects a presence of bed bugs. The routine 800 then advances toblock 702 of the routine 700 shown in FIG. 7 to determine whether toissue a bed bug detection alert notification based on the time intervalbetween the start time and end time, which is discussed in detail above.

It should be appreciated that the sensor 210 may be embodied as othertypes of sensors that are capable of detecting the targeted biochemicalanalyte. For example, as discussed above, the sensor 210 may be embodiedas a cantilever sensor. In such embodiments, the cantilever sensorincludes a body and one or more cantilevers that project outwardly fromthe body. Each cantilever is coated with the agent, which reacts withthe targeted biochemical analyte, and is configured to oscillate in avertical direction. To initiate the oscillation of each cantilever, thecantilever sensor may be excited by resistive heating to cause a layerthermal expansion mismatch. When the agent of the oscillating cantileverreacts with the targeted biochemical analyte, the resonant frequency ofthe oscillating cantilever changes due to increase in mass on thecantilever. As discussed above, the frequency change may be used todetect the presence of bed bugs. In some embodiments, the cantileversensor may further include a piezoresistive pressure sensor. In suchembodiments, the piezoresistive pressure sensor measures a degree ofdeformation (e.g., bending) of the cantilever during the oscillation anddetermines the presence of bed bugs if the degree of deformation isgreater than a predefined threshold.

Referring now to FIGS. 9-12, another embodiment of a pest control device(hereinafter pest control device 890) is shown. In the illustrativeembodiment, the pest control device 890 includes a sensor 908 that ispositioned in a harborage device 900. It should be appreciated that thesensor 908 may take the form of the sensor 210 described above inreference to FIGS. 1-8 or any of the other sensors described above. Theharborage device 900 is configured to create favorable conditions toattract pests (e.g., color, temperature, texture, and/or odor thatappeals to targeted pests) to cause them to enter and congregate in theharborage device. For example, in the illustrative embodiment, theharborage device 900 includes a light blocking material to attract pestssuch as, for example, bed bugs, that prefer a dark and shadyenvironment. Additionally, in the illustrative embodiment, the harboragedevice 900 includes an attractive color that appeals to the targetedpests.

As shown in FIG. 9, the harborage device 900 is configured to be securedto a bed headboard 952 of a bed 950. For example, the harborage device900 may be secured to a surface of the bed headboard 952 that faces awayfrom the bed mattress 954 and toward the wall of the room. Such aharborage device 900 is configured to attract pests that have apreferred habitat near beds or mattresses, for example, bed bugs. Itshould be appreciated that, in some embodiments, the harborage device900 may be secured to any surface of the bed 950 using a fastener oradhesive that do not produce volatile compounds that may react with thetargeted analyte or otherwise interfere with the sensor. In otherembodiments, the harborage device 900 may be placed near the bed 950 orany other environment that is prone to pest infestation.

The harborage device 900 includes an inner chamber 940 and a pluralityof inlets 928 that open into the chamber 940 to permit entry of thepests. It should be appreciated that each inlet 928 is sized to alloweasy access for pests and provide oxygen within the harborage device 900for harboring the pests. To do so, the width of each inlet 928 may bedetermined based on the size of the targeted pests to ensure that eachinlet 928 is sized to allow entrance of the targeted pests whilereducing unnecessary diffusional losses of the targeted analyte to theenvironment of the harborage device 900. For example, if the harboragedevice 900 is configured to detect the presence of bed bugs, the optimalwidth of each inlet 928 may range from 3 mm to 100 mm.

In the illustrative embodiment, the harborage device 900 is configuredto be opened by a technician or other user to permit access to thechamber 940. Referring now to FIGS. 10 and 11, the harborage device 900is shown in its open configuration. The harborage device 900 includes abottom panel 902 and a top panel 904 that is pivotably coupled to thebottom panel 902 via a hinge 906. The hinge 906 allows the top panel 904to move relative to the bottom panel 902 to permit access to the innerchamber 940. In use, the harborage device 900 is folded via the hinge906 such that the top panel 904 is positioned on top of the bottom panel902 to close the harborage device 900 (see FIGS. 9 and 12-13). It shouldbe appreciated that, in some embodiments, the bottom panel 902 may becoupled to the top panel 904 via other types of fastener that permit thepanels to be moved apart and permit access to the inner chamber 940.

As shown in FIG. 10, the bottom panel 902 includes an outer frame 912and a plurality of openings 914 disposed in the outer frame 912. The toppanel 904 also includes an outer frame 922 that cooperates with theouter frame 912 of the bottom panel 902 to define the inner chamber 940.The top panel 904 also includes a plurality of openings 924 disposed inits outer frame 922 that are configured to align with the correspondingopenings 914 of the bottom panel 902 to define the inlets 928 of theharborage device 900 when the harborage device 900 is closed (i.e., whenthe top panel 904 is folded on the bottom panel 902 via the hinge 906 asshown in FIGS. 11 and 12.)

The panels 902, 904 further include inner surfaces 918, 926,respectively. In the illustrative embodiment, the inner surfaces 918,926 are coated with a textured material to attract pests into theharborage device 900. For example, the textured material may be afibrous material. The textured material is configured to providetraction for pests to move inside of the harborage device 900 along theinner surfaces 918, 926. For example, the textured material may be woven(e.g. fabric) or non-woven (e.g. paper) and may be made of synthetic,natural, or blended fibers. In some embodiments, the textured materialmay be colored to attract pests. For example, to attract bed bugs, apaper with red-shade or black color may be used. It should beappreciated that the textured material is configured to provide minimalto no sorption of the targeted analyte to prevent or minimize anyinterference with the sensor detection. In some embodiments, a thicknessof the texture material may be optimized to reduce the sorption of thetargeted analyte.

Additionally, the bottom panel 902 further includes a plurality of innerwalls 916 extending from the inner surface 918. As described in detailbelow, the plurality of inner walls 916 divide the inner chamber 940into a plurality of channels 932. Each channel 932 is sized to receiveone or more pests and configured to direct airflow from the inlets 928toward the sensor 908 as indicated by arrows 934. It should beappreciated that, in some embodiments, the flow channels 932 may tapertoward peripheries of the harborage device 900. Such tapered flowchannels 932 are adapted to increase concentration of the targetedanalyte in the harborage device 900 by restricting diffusion of thetargeted analyte to narrower flow channels 932 and reduce losses of thetargeted analyte to air space surrounding the pests.

The plurality of inner walls 916 include a plurality of guide walls 936and a plurality of barrier walls 938. Each guide wall 936 is positionedon each side of an inlet 928 and extends in a first direction as shownby arrow 968. Each pair of guide walls 936 defines an inlet channel 960of the plurality of channels 932. Each barrier wall 938 is spaced apartfrom the ends of the guide walls 936 and includes a first wall section942, a second wall section 944 extending from an end of the first wallsection 942, and a third wall section 946 extending from an opposite endof the first wall section 942 to form a generally U-shaped barrier.

The first wall section 942 is configured to extend in the seconddirection orthogonal to the first direction, while the second wallsection 944 and the third wall section 946 extend parallel to the guidewalls 936. It should be appreciated that the second wall section 944cooperates with the guide wall 936 to define a first side channel 962 ofthe plurality of channels 932, while the third wall section 946cooperates with the guide wall 936 to define a second side channel 964of the plurality of channels 932. As described above, the plurality ofchannels 932 cooperate to define a flow path in the inner chamber 940from the inlets 928 toward the sensor 908 as indicated by the arrows934. To do so, the first channel 960 is configured to direct the airflowin the first direction from the corresponding inlet 928 and the firstand second side channels 962, 964 are configured to direct the airflowin a third direction opposite the first direction as shown in arrow 970.Additionally, a fourth channel 966 is defined between the barrier walls938, specifically between a third wall section 946 of one barrier wall938 and a second wall section 944 of another barrier wall 938, to directairflow in the first direction as shown in arrow 972. As can be seen inFIG. 10, the fourth channel 966 is offset from the inlets 928 of theharborage device 900.

As further shown in FIG. 10, the harborage device 900 includes thesensor 908 and an airflow device 910 to draw airflow toward the sensor908 via the flow path. In the illustrative embodiment, the airflowdevice 910 is an air pump, such as, for example, a peristaltic ordiaphragm pump. However, it should be appreciated that, in someembodiments, the airflow device 910 may be embodied as a compressor, aMicro-Electro-Mechanical-Systems (MEMS) device, or a fan. The sensor 908and the air pump 910 are disposed in the top panel 904 of the harboragedevice 900 such that the sensor 908 and the air pump 910 are positionedin the inner chamber 940 of the harborage device 900. The sensor 908 andthe air pump 910 are positioned on the inner surface 926 of the toppanel 904 such that, when the harborage device 900 is closed, the sensor908 and the air pump 910 do not engage the plurality of the inner walls916, thereby avoiding interference with the airflow and/or the pestability to move in the inner chamber 940. In the illustrativeembodiment, the air pump 910 is positioned between the outer frame 922and the sensor 908 in order to draw air from the inlets 928 toward andthrough the sensor 908. It should be appreciated that, in someembodiments, the air pump 910 may be omitted from the harborage device900. In such embodiments, the sensor 908 may rely on the natural airflowwithin the inner chamber 940 to deliver the targeted analyte secreted bythe pests to the sensor 908 for detection.

In some embodiments, the sensor 908 may include a barrier sheet thatcovers the sensor 908. The barrier sheet is made of a mesh material toprevent pests from coming in direct contact with the sensor 908. Itshould be appreciated that the mesh material does not block diffusion ofthe targeted analyte.

As described above, the sensor 908 is configured to detect the presenceof pests. For example, in the illustrative embodiment, the sensor 908 isembodied as a resonator sensor such as a quartz crystal microbalance(QCM) or a small-scale QCM sensor. As described in detail above, theresonator sensor 908 is configured to detect the presence of pests bydetecting a presence of a targeted biochemical analyte secreted by pestsin air. It should be appreciated that, in some embodiments, the sensor908 may be embodied as a cantilever sensor to detect a presence of pestsas described in detail above. It should also be appreciated that thesensor 908 may be any sensor described above in regard to FIGS. 1-8.

In some embodiments, the sensor 908 may be positioned outside of theharborage device 900. In such embodiments, the sensor 908 is coupled tothe harborage device 900 via a conduit, which is adapted to directairflow from the harborage device 900 and feed air into the sensor 908for detection. In some embodiments, an end of the conduit may beinserted up to 15 cm deep into the inner chamber 940 to create adraft-free environment in the inner chamber 930 to attract pests thatavoid drafty locations (e.g., bed bugs). In some embodiments, theconduit may be inserted along one of the edges of the inner chamber 930.In other embodiments, the conduit may be oriented at an angle up to 90degrees relative to one of edges of the harborage device 900.

It should be appreciated that, in some embodiments, the harborage device900 may include a heating element to adjust the temperature in the innerchamber 940. In such embodiments, the harborage device 900 may alsoinclude a controller to operate the heating element and maintain thetemperature in the inner chamber 940 above ambient temperature up to 40°C. to create a favorable condition for the bed bugs. Additionally, insome embodiments, the controller may further increase the temperature toabout 100° C. to exterminate any pests detected in the inner chamber940. In such embodiments, the controller may increase the temperaturefrom the inlets 928 of the harborage device 900 toward the barrier wall938 to about 100° C. in order to prevent the bed bugs within the innerchamber 940 from leaving the harborage device 900.

In some embodiments, the harborage device 900 may further include apre-concentrator that accumulates the targeted analyte and releases theaccumulated targeted analyte for pest detection. The pre-concentratormay be embodied as one or more sheets that sorb targeted biochemicalanalyte that covers at least a portion of the inner surfaces 918, 926 ofthe harborage device 900 (e.g., one or more pathways from the inlets 928to the sensor 908). For example, the one or more sheets may be made ofan analyte-sorbing material or a woven or non-woven fibrous material. Insome embodiments, the one or more fibrous sheets may contain sorbentpowder between fibers of a sheet of fibrous material or between twosheets of a fibrous material for higher sorption. It should beappreciated that the pre-concentrator may be configured to sorb andaccumulate the targeted analyte for a period of time and then releasethe accumulated targeted analyte all at once when heated to provide moreconcentrated targeted analyte for sensor detection. This reduces thediffusion of the targeted analyte to air space surrounding the pests andmay allow the sensor 908 to detect the presence of fewer pests.

For example, the pre-concentrator may be configured to absorb thetargeted analyte at a first temperature and release the absorbedtargeted analyte at a second temperature. For example, in someembodiments, the pre-concentrator may be a fibrous material such as, forexample, paper, which is filled with sorbent powder, and is positionedon at least one of the inner surfaces 918, 926. In such embodiments, thepre-concentrator has a sorption phase and a desorption (i.e., release)phase. During the sorption phase, the heating element may be operated toincrease the temperature inside of the harborage device 900 to aboveambient temperature to attract pests, and the pre-concentrator isconfigured to absorb the targeted analyte secreted by the pests. Duringthe desorption or release phase, the heating element is operated tofurther increase the temperature inside of the harborage device 900, andthe targeted analyte is desorbed or released from the pre-concentrator.The desorption of the targeted analyte increases the concentration ofthe targeted analyte drawn by the air pump 910 into the sensor 908 forpest detection. It should be appreciated that the sensor 908 may detectthe presence of pests continuously or intermittently during thedesorption phase.

In some embodiments, the pre-concentrator may be embodied as a tube or acolumn that extends from the inlet 928 of the harborage device 900 tothe sensor 908. In such embodiments, the tube is made of ananalyte-sorbing material configured to sorb the targeted biochemicalanalyte as air surrounding the harborage device 900 passes through thetube. Upon heating the tube, the collected analytes in the tube arerapidly desorbed. It should be appreciated that the air pump 910 mayfacilitate to draw desorbed targeted analyte released from thepre-concentrator to the sensor 908 for detection.

In some embodiments, the harborage device 900 may include multipleheating elements. The heating elements may be uniformly distributedalong the flow path to propagate heat pulses from the inlets 928 towardthe sensor 908. For example, the heating elements may be activated in anorder, from a heating element farthest from the sensor 908 to a heatingelement closed to the sensor 908 or vise versa, to desorb the targetedanalyte from the pre-concentrator in a sequence. Subsequently, the airpump 910 may be activated to pull air into the sensor 908. When thefresh air is pulled in from the outside of the inner chamber 940 throughthe inlets 928 toward the sensor 908, air collects the targeted analytedesorbed from the pre-concentrator in the inner chamber 940 and carriesinto the sensor 908 providing a higher concentration of the targetedanalyte for pest detection.

It should be appreciated that the pre-concentrator may be lined alongthe peripheries of the harborage device 900. In some embodiments, thepre-concentrator may be disposed adjacent to the sensor 908 opposite theair pump 910 such that the sensor 908 is positioned between the air pump910 and the pre-concentrator. Such configuration allows the air pump 910to draw desorbed targeted analyte released from the pre-concentrator tothe sensor 908 for detection. In some embodiments, the sensor 908 mayinclude an internal pre-concentrator. In some embodiments, the externalpre-concentrator may be embodied as a test chamber sized to receive anamount of the targeted analyte.

In some embodiments, a barrier may be positioned between the outer frame912 of the bottom panel 902 and the outer frame 922 of the top panel 904when the harborage device 900 is in the closed configuration to preventtargeted analyte from diffusing out of the harborage device 900. Forexample, the barrier may be embodied as a lining between the outerframes 912, 922 may be made of an aluminized film. Such barrier mayincrease a concentration of the targeted analyte in the harborage device900 for the sensor detection. The barrier may further provide apreferable condition by establishing a draft-free zone inside theharborage device 900 to attract pests that avoid drafty locations (e.g.,bed bugs).

Referring now to FIGS. 12 and 13, in use, the harborage device 900 isfolded such that the outer frame 922 of the top panel 904 is positionedon top of the outer frame 912 of the bottom panel 902. As discussedabove, when the harborage device 900 is in the closed configuration, theinner surface 918 of the bottom panel 902 faces but spaced apart fromthe inner surface 926 of the top panel 904 defining the inner chamber940, which is configured to allow the pests to move in the inner chamber940. In the illustrative embodiment, the width of inner chamber 940(i.e., the distance between the inner surface 918 of the bottom panel902 and the inner surface 926 of the top panel 904) becomes smallertoward the sensor 908 to create a narrower flow path near the sensor 908to increase the concentration of the targeted analyte near the sensor908 by restricting the diffusion of the targeted analyte to the narrowpath. However, it should be appreciated that, in some embodiments, thewidth of the inner chamber 940 may be consistent throughout theharborage device 900.

As shown in FIG. 13, the bottom panel 902 further includes a pluralityof ramp surfaces 920, each of which is positioned outside of each inlet928 to guide pests into the corresponding inlet 928. In the illustrativeembodiment, a width of each ramp surface 920 may range from 3 mm to 100mm to correspond to the width of each inlet 928. In some embodiments,the bottom panel 902 may include one ramp surface 902 that extends alongan entire width of the bottom panel 902.

As shown in FIG. 9, in the illustrative embodiment, the harborage device900 is adapted to be positioned or secured to a bed headboard 952 of abed 950 such that the bottom panel 902 is positioned between the surfaceof the bed headboard 952 and the top panel 904. When the harboragedevice 900 is secured to the bed headboard, each ramp surface 920 isconfigured to bridge between the surface of the bed headboard 952 andeach inlet 928 such that the pests may travel from the bed into theharborage device 900. It should be appreciated that the ramp surface 920may be coated with a textured material similar to the material on theinner surface 918 of the bottom panel 902 to provide pests traction tomove upwardly along the ramp surface 920 into the harborage device 900.In some embodiments, the ramp surface 920 may be colored to create afavorable condition to attract pests into the harborage device 900.

In the illustrative embodiment, the harborage device 900 has arectangular shape; however, it should be appreciated that the harboragedevice 900 may be in a polygon, a polygon with rounded corners, an oval,or a circle. It should be appreciated that external surfaces of theharborage device 900 may be in attractive color to attract pests. Forexample, the external surfaces of the harborage device 900 may be inred-shade or black color to attract bed bugs. It should also beappreciated that, in some embodiments, both bottom and top panels 902,904 may be flat or curved to define the inner chamber 930 of harboragedevice 900. In other embodiments, one of the panels may be flat and theother panel is curved to reduce the material used.

In the illustrative embodiment, the harborage device 900 furtherincludes a local indicator. The local indicator is coupled to the sensor908 via a wire and is positioned on the outer surface of the top panel904 of the harborage device 900. However, in some embodiments, the localindicator may be positioned outside of the harborage device 900 via awire. In other embodiments, the local indicator may be wirelesslyconnected to the sensor 908 harborage device 900. Similar to the localindicator 218 discussed in detail above, the local indicator may beembodied as any type of indicator that is capable of generating an alertto notify a human operator or a technician. For example, the localindicator of the harborage device 900 may be embodied as a visual and/oraudible indicator. In some embodiments, the visual indicator may includea light emitting diode (LED), fluorescent, incandescent, and/or neontype light source. The audible indicator may generate an alert sound tonotify the technician. In the illustrative embodiment, the localindicator generates an alert indicative of a presence or absence of bedbugs. For example, in some embodiments, the LED light indicator may beenergized to project a colored light, change color, or change from anon-blinking light to a blinking light to indicate the presence of bedbugs. In other embodiments, the audible local indicator may generatesound to indicate the presence of bed bugs.

In other embodiments, the harborage device 900 may include a wirelesscommunication circuit to communicate with a pest control system orserver to notify when pests are detected and/or the sensor requiresmaintenance. As described in detail above, the wireless communicationcircuit may be configured to use any one or more communicationtechnologies (e.g., wireless or wired communications) and associatedprotocols (e.g., Ethernet, Bluetooth®, Wi-Fi®, LTE, 5G, etc.) to effectsuch communication.

In use, a human operator or a technician may mount the harborage device900 on the bed headboard 952 of the bed 950 to detect the presence ofthe pests that have a preferred habitat near beds or mattresses, forexample, bed bugs. The harborage device 900 is oriented such that thebottom panel 902 of the harborage device 900 is positioned on thesurface of the bed headboard 952. This allows the ramp surfaces 920 ofthe harborage device 900 to bridge between the surface of the bedheadboard 952 and the inlets 928 to allow the pests to travel from thebed headboard 952 into the inner chamber 930 of the harborage device900. As discussed above, the ramp surface 920 may be colored or coatedwith a textured material to create a favorable condition to attract thetargeted pests along the ramp surface 902 into the inner chamber 930.

The air pump 910 of the harborage device 900 is continuously orperiodically activated to pull air from the inlets 928 to draw thetargeted biochemical analyte from area surrounding the pests in theinner chamber 930 toward the sensor 908. When air is pulled into thesensor 908, the sensor 908 is configured to detect the targetedbiochemical analyte in air to detect the presence of the pests. Forexample, the sensor 908 is configured to detect the targeted biochemicalanalyte, such as T2H, T20, 4-oxo-(E)-2-hexenal, and/or4-oxo-(E)-2-octenal, to detect the presence of bed bugs in or near theharborage device 900. The sensor 908 then transmits a signal to thelocal indicator to generate an alert to notify the human operator or thetechnician of the presence of bed bugs.

As described above, the harborage device 900 may not include any airflowdevices, including, for example, an air pump 910. Without an air pump910 pulling air towards the sensor 908, the sensor 908 relies on thetargeted analyte present in the air surrounding the pests to reach thesensor 908 primarily via diffusion through air within the inner chamber940. In other words, the targeted biochemical analyte molecules spreadaway from the source (i.e., analyte-emitting bed bugs) in all availabledirections through air in the inner chamber 930 of the harborage device900. In such embodiments, the location of the sensor 908 in the innerchamber 940 may be selected to minimize the maximum diffusion path(e.g., an open passageway from the inlet 928 to the sensor 908). Theharborage device may further include an impermeable liner (e.g.,aluminized film) positioned in a gap between the outer frames 912, 922of the top and bottom panels 902, 904, respectively, to minimize theloss of the targeted analyte through the gap to maximize theconcentration of the targeted analyte in the inner chamber 940 for thesensor detection. It should be appreciated that, in such embodiments,the harborage device may further include a pre-concentrator similar tothe pre-concentrator described in detail above. In other embodiments,the harborage device may also include one or more heating elementssimilar to the heating element described in detail above.

Referring now to FIG. 14, another embodiment of a sensor 1000 is shown.Similar to the sensor 210, the sensor 1000 includes a sensor cell 1002(e.g., a quartz crystal resonator) and a sensor coating 1004 coated onthe surface of the sensor cell 1002. In the illustrative embodiment, thesensor coating 1004 includes a coating gel compound made of a polymergel and the agent (e.g., dioctyl-CTI). As discussed above, the agent isconfigured to react with the targeted biochemical analyte 1006 found inthe secretion of bed bugs (e.g., T2H, T2O, 4-oxo-(E)-2-hexenal, or4-oxo-(E)-2-octenal).

In the illustrative embodiment, the polymer gel has high viscosity(e.g., a jelly-like consistency), optionally exhibits viscoplasticproperties (e.g., yield stress), and high thermal and chemical stabilityto form a stable coating on the surface of the sensor 1002. As such,rather than directly coating the agent onto the surface of the sensor1002, the polymer gel is adapted to form a medium to immobilize theagent on top of the surface of the sensor 1002. Additionally, in theillustrative embodiment, a polymer gel that has a relatively lowmolecular weight was used to achieve a desired viscosity level of thepolymer gel and increase the detection sensitivity of the targetedbiochemical analyte, which is discussed further below. It should beappreciated that liquid to be used to dissolve polymer to form thepolymer gel depends on a type of polymer to achieve a stable interfacethat has high thermal and chemical stability. An exemplary polymer gelmay include polymethylphenylsiloxiane (PMPS), polydimethylsiloxane(PDMS), fluoroalcohol polycarbosilane which is available from SeacoastScience, Inc. of Carlsbad, Calif. and marketed as the SC-F101,fluoroalcohol polysiloxane which is available from Seacoast Science,Inc. of Carlsbad, Calif. and marketed as SXFA, bisphenol-containingpolymer (BSP3), poly-2-dimethylamin-ethyl-methacrylate (PDMAEMC), orpolymers with silicone (Si) and flourine (F). It should be appreciatedthat, in some embodiments, the coating gel compound may include morethan one type of polymer gel.

In use, as shown in FIG. 14, the targeted biochemical analyte 1006,typically in a gaseous state, present in the air surrounding the sensor1000 diffuses into the coating gel compound of the sensor coating 1004.The diffused targeted biochemical analyte 1006 then reacts with theagent present in the coating gel compound and produces an agent-targetedbiochemical analyte product that has a higher molecular weight than theagent alone. In the illustrative embodiment, a low molecular weightpolymer gel was used to form the coating gel compound, such that even asmall weight change may be detected indicating a presence of a smallamount of the targeted biochemical analyte 1006. It should beappreciated that the diffused targeted biochemical analyte 1006 that hasyet to react with the agent may be released back to the air based onsolubility of the coating gel compound.

In the illustrative embodiment, the sensor coating 1004 was formed byspin coating to deposit uniform films to the surface of the sensor cell1002 using a spin coater. To form a thin uniform coating, a thick layerof the coating gel compound was deposited onto the sensor cell 1002 andthe excess of the coating gel compound was removed via centrifugal forceexerted by spinning using a spin coater. In some embodiments, spraycoating may be used to form the sensor coating 1004 by spraying a dosedamount of a mist of the coating gel compound onto the sensor cell 1002.The mist may be produced by using an atomizing nozzle (e.g.,piezoelectric or pressurized-gas-driven), an inkjet printing head (e.g.,piezoelectric or thermal), or a similar device ejecting a singlemicro-drop of solution at a time. In other embodiments, the sensorcoating 1004 may be formed by using a capillary deposition method, asoft lithography (e.g. microcontact printing), or a dip coating method.It should be appreciated that, in each of the embodiments, the coatinggel compound may be diluted in a volatile solvent to control theviscosity of the coating gel compound during the coating process.

Referring now to FIG. 15, a graph illustrates a mass change of a coatinggel compound that includes polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) polymer gel andCTI agent. As discussed above, the mass change is caused by thereactions between the CTI agent in the PDMS coating gel compound andtrans-2-hexenal (T2H) (i.e., the targeted biochemical analyte) presentin the air surrounding the PDMS coating gel compound. Prior tointroducing the targeted biochemical analyte, the temperature wasincreased to about 50 degree Celsius between t₀ and t₁ for about 110minutes to ensure that the PDMS coating gel compound is clean. Asdiscussed above, the reaction between the targeted biochemical analyteand the agent may be reversible with heat. By heating the PDMS coatinggel compound at about 50 degree Celsius for about 110 minutes ensuresthat any possible targeted biochemical analyte reacted with the agent inthe PDMS coating gel compound is removed from the PDMS coating gelcompound. Additionally, any possible targeted biochemical analytediffused in the PDMS coating gel compound that may not have reacted withthe agent may also be released from the PDMS coating gel compound.

The temperature was dropped to about 35 degree Celsius at t₂ and wasremained at about 35 degree Celsius. It should be noted that the weightof the PDMS coating gel compound remained relatively constant until thetargeted biochemical analyte was introduced at t₃. In other words, inthe absence of the targeted biochemical analyte, no significant weightchange in the PDMS coating gel compound that includes PDMS polymer geland CTI agent was detected.

At t₃, a sample with the targeted biochemical analyte was released intothe air surrounding the PDMS coating gel compound until t₄. The targetedbiochemical analyte in the air surrounding the PDMS coating gel compoundis adapted to diffuse into the PDMS coating gel compound based on thesolubility of the PDMS coating gel compound. Once the targetedbiochemical analyte is diffused in the PDMS coating gel compound, thetargeted biochemical analyte is configured to react with the targetedbiochemical analyte in the PDMS coating gel compound and produce anagent-targeted biochemical analyte product that has a higher molecularweight than the agent alone. Accordingly, as can be seen in FIG. 15, theweight plot continuously increased during the release of the targetedbiochemical analyte from t₃ to t₄ indicating an increase in weight ofthe PDMS coating gel compound.

When the flow of the sample was stopped at t₄, the weight of the PDMScoating gel compound slightly decreased. Such decrease in the weight maybe caused by a release of unreacted targeted biochemical analyte fromthe PDMS coating gel compound. For example, the targeted biochemicalanalyte in the air surrounding the sensor 1000 may have diffused in thePDMS coating gel compound during t₃ and t₄ but has not yet to react withthe agent in the PDMS coating gel compound. Such unreacted targetedbiochemical analyte is adapted to diffuse out of the PDMS coating gelcompound back to the surrounding air. Additionally, in some embodiments,the reaction between the agent and the targeted biochemical analyte maybe reversible. In such embodiments, in the absence of the targetedbiochemical analyte in the surrounding, the agent-targeted biochemicalanalyte products may be reversed back to the reactants (i.e., the agentand the targeted biochemical analyte) over time.

At t₅, the sample with the targeted biochemical analyte was reintroducedto the air surrounding the sensor 1000 and the weight of the PDMScoating gel compound continued to increase again from the reactionbetween the targeted biochemical analyte of the sample and the agent inthe PDMS coating gel compound.

Referring now to FIG. 16, a graph illustrates a mass change of anothercoating gel compound that includes polymethylphenylsiloxiane (PMPS)polymer gel and CTI agent. Similar to FIG. 15, the mass change is causedby the reactions between the CTI agent in the PMPS coating gel compoundand trans-2-hexenal (T2H) (i.e., the targeted biochemical analyte)present in the air surrounding the PMPS coating gel compound.

Prior to introducing the targeted biochemical analyte, the temperaturewas increased to about 50 degree Celsius between t₀ and t₁ for about 110minutes to ensure that the PMPS coating gel compound is clean. Asdiscussed above, the reaction between the targeted biochemical analyteand the agent may be reversible with heat. By heating the PMPS coatinggel compound at about 50 degree Celsius for about 110 minutes ensuresthat any possible targeted biochemical analyte reacted with the agent inthe PMPS coating gel compound is removed from the PMPS coating gelcompound. Additionally, any possible targeted biochemical analytediffused in the PMPS coating gel compound that may not have reacted withthe agent may also be released from the PMPS coating gel compound.

The temperature was dropped to about 35 degree Celsius at t2 and wasremained at about 35 degree Celsius. It should be noted that the weightof the PMPS coating gel compound remained relatively constant until thetargeted biochemical analyte was introduced at t₃. In other words, inthe absence of the targeted biochemical analyte, no significant weightchange in the PMPS coating gel compound that includes PMPS polymer geland CTI agent was detected.

At t₃, a sample with the targeted biochemical analyte was released intothe air surrounding the PMPS coating gel compound until t4. The targetedbiochemical analyte in the air surrounding the PMPS coating gel compoundis adapted to diffuse into the PMPS coating gel compound based on thesolubility of the PMPS coating gel compound. Once the targetedbiochemical analyte is diffused in the PMPS coating gel compound, thetargeted biochemical analyte is configured to react with the targetedbiochemical analyte in the PMPS coating gel compound and produce anagent-targeted biochemical analyte product that has a higher molecularweight than the agent alone. Accordingly, as can be seen in FIG. 16, theweight plot continuously increased during the release of the targetedbiochemical analyte from t₃ to t₄ indicating an increase in weight ofthe PMPS coating gel compound.

When the flow of the sample was stopped at t₄, the weight of the PMPScoating gel compound slightly decreased. As discussed above, suchdecrease in the weight may be caused by a release of unreacted targetedbiochemical analyte from the PMPS coating gel compound. For example, thetargeted biochemical analyte in the air surrounding the sensor 1000 mayhave diffused in the PMPS coating gel compound during t₃ and t₄ but hasnot yet to react with the agent in the PMPS coating gel compound. Suchunreacted targeted biochemical analyte is adapted to diffuse out of thePMPS coating gel compound back to the surrounding air. Additionally, insome embodiments, the reaction between the agent and the targetedbiochemical analyte may be reversible. In such embodiments, in theabsence of the targeted biochemical analyte in the surrounding, theagent-targeted biochemical analyte products may be reversed back to thereactants (i.e., the agent and the targeted biochemical analyte) overtime.

At t₅, the sample with the targeted biochemical analyte was reintroducedto the air surrounding the sensor 1000 and the weight of the PMPScoating gel compound continued to increase again from the reactionbetween the targeted biochemical analyte of the sample and the agent inthe PMPS coating gel compound.

This disclosure further entails the composition, preparation, and use ofthe compounds exemplified by the below structures for use, for example,in bedbug detection. In particular, these compounds have shownin-solution reactivity with trans-2-hexanal, a chemical generated bybedbugs. The below compounds were synthesized and reactivity in solutionwith trans-2-hexanal (T2H) was tested by mixing a 1:1 ratio ofphosphorodithioate with T2H. All the compounds reacted fully with T2Hover time.

Experimental Procedures Synthesis of2-mercapto-5,5-dimethyl-1,3,2-dioxaphosphinane 2-sulfide

A 250 ml R.B.F with magnetic stirrer bar was charged with the diol (5.0g, 48.0 mmol), followed by P₂S₅ (4.3 g, 19.3 mmol) and toluene (32 ml).Then the reaction mixture was heated to 100° C. for 12 h, undernitrogen. The mixture was cooled and concentrated under reducedpressure, a solid formed and was separated from the oil. The residualoil was concentrated under high-vacuum, pentane 50 mL was added andfurther dried under high-vacuum, to give 4.0 g of product. ¹H NMR(CDCl₃, GLC=18743): δ 1.1 (s, 6H), 4.1 (J=15.5 Hz, 4H).

Synthesis of 2-mercapto-5,5-dipropyl-1,3,2-dioxaphosphinane 2-sulfide

Step 1: Synthesis of 2,2-dipropylpropane-1,3-diol

A 250 mL round bottom flask (1 neck) with magnetic stirrer bar was flamedried, cooled under vacuum, and then flushed with nitrogen. Undernitrogen, it was charged with diethyl 2,2-dipropylmalonate (5 g, 20.45mmol) followed by THF (50 ml). The reaction was cooled to 0° C. andlithium aluminum hydride (27.6 ml, 27.6 mmol, 1M in THF) was addeddropwise over 30 min, then reaction mixture was allowed to warm up toRT, stirred at RT for 3 hours. After this time, the reaction was cooledto 0° C. and water (1 ml) was added then 4 ml 15% NaOH (aq. solution),after 15 min of stirring the solid salts were filtered off and filtratewas dried over sodium sulfate, filtered and concentrated to obtain acolorless oil ˜2 g, which was purified by column (0-10% MeOH in DCM) toafford 2,2-dipropylpropane-1,3-diol

As an oil (1.1 g). ¹H NMR (CDCl₃, GLC=18983): δ 3.52 (s, 4H), 3.15 (s,2H), 1.21 (m, 8H), 0.89 (t, 6H)

Step 2: Synthesis of 2-mercapto-5,5-dipropyl-1,3,2-dioxaphosphinane2-sulfide

A 50 ml R.B.F with magnetic stirrer bar was charged with2,2-dipropylpropane-1,3-diol (1.1 g, 6.87 mmol), followed by P₂S₅ (0.61g, 2.75 mmol) in toluene (5 ml). Then the reaction mixture was heated to100° C. for 16 h, toluene was distilled out at 100° C. under vacuum. Theresulting residue was diluted in DCM and purified by column (0-100% DCMin hexane, isocratic gradient) to afford the title compound as greenishoil 0.6 g. ¹H NMR (CDCl₃, GLC=19044): δ 4.13 (d, 4H), 2.62 (s, 1H), 1.32(m, 8H), 0.95 (m, 6H).

Synthesis of 5,5-diisobutyl-2-mercapto-1,3,2-dioxaphosphinane 2-sulfide

A 250 ml R.B.F with magnetic stirrer bar was charged with2,2-diisobutyl-1,3-propanol (2.0 g, 10.6 mmol), followed by P₂S₅ (0.94g, 4.23 mmol) and toluene (7 ml). Then the reaction mixture was heatedto 80° C. for 3 h, under nitrogen. The mixture was cooled andconcentrated under reduced pressure and purified by silica column (0-10%MeOH in DCM) to afford 0.9 g of the title compound. ¹H NMR (CDCl₃,GLC=18768): δ 0.81-1.06 (m, 12H), 1.42 (d, J=5.5 Hz, 4H), 1.73 (m, 2H),2.93 (s, 1H), 4.17 (d, J=15.7 Hz, 4H).

Synthesis of O,O-bis(2-methoxyethyl) S-hydrogen Phosphorodithioate

A 50 ml R.B.F with magnetic stirrer bar was charged with2-methoxyethanol (4.2 mL, 52.0 mmol), followed by P₂S₅ (2.8 g, 12.6mmol) and toluene (50 ml). Then the reaction mixture was heated to 80°C. for 4 h, and was concentrated under reduced pressure. The resultingresidue was diluted with minimal DCM and purified by column (40-80%ethyl acetate in hexane) to afford the title compound as greenish oil1.2 g. ¹H NMR (CDCl₃, GLC=19229): δ 4.30 (m, 4H), 3.66 (m, 4H), 3.4 (s,6H).

Synthesis of O,O-bis(4-methylpentan-2-yl) S-hydrogen Phosphorodithioate

A 250 ml R.B.F with magnetic stirrer bar was charged with the alcohol(6.0 mL, 47.0 mmol), followed by P₂S₅ (3.0 g, 13.5 mmol) and toluene (31ml). Then the reaction mixture was heated to 100° C. for 12 h, undernitrogen. The mixture was cooled and concentrated under reducedpressure, and 3.0 g of the mixture was further dried under high-vacuum,to give 1.1 g of the title compound. ¹H NMR (CDCl₃, GLC=18843): δ 0.91(m, 12H), 1.37 (m, 8H), 1.68 (m, 4H), 4.8 (m, 2H).

Synthesis of O,O-dipentyl S-hydrogen Phosphorodithioate

A 50 ml R.B.F with magnetic stirrer bar was charged with 1-pentanol (1.1mL, 10.1 mmol), followed by P₂S₅ (0.56 g, 2.5 mmol) and toluene (12.5ml). Then the reaction mixture was heated to 100° C. for 3 h, undernitrogen. The resulting residue was cooled to RT and a 50% w/v solutionof KOH was added. The mixture was concentrated under reduced pressure, asemi-solid was crystallized and was washed with hexane to give the 0.5 gof the title compound. ¹NMR (CDCl₃, GLC=19169): δ 0.91(m, 6H), 1.37 (m,8H), 1.71 (m, 4H), 4.15 (m, 4H).

While the disclosure has been illustrated and described in detail in thedrawings and foregoing description, such an illustration and descriptionis to be considered as exemplary and not restrictive in character, itbeing understood that only illustrative embodiments have been shown anddescribed and that all changes and modifications that come within thespirit of the disclosure are desired to be protected.

There are a plurality of advantages of the present disclosure arisingfrom the various features of the method, apparatus, and system describedherein. It will be noted that alternative embodiments of the method,apparatus, and system of the present disclosure may not include all ofthe features described yet still benefit from at least some of theadvantages of such features. Those of ordinary skill in the art mayreadily devise their own implementations of the method, apparatus, andsystem that incorporate one or more of the features of the presentinvention and fall within the spirit and scope of the present disclosureas defined by the appended claims.

1-115. (canceled)
 116. A thiol of the formula V

or a tautomer thereof, wherein X is S or O; Z³ and Z⁴ are eachindependently O or S; R⁷ and R⁸ are each independently selected from thegroup consisting of C₁-C₄ alkylene-O—(C₁-C₄ alkylene)_(q)R⁹ and C₁-C₄alkylene-S—(C₁-C₄ alkylene)_(z)R¹⁰; R⁹ and R¹⁰ are each independentlyselected from the group consisting of hydrogen, C₁-C₈ alkyl, C₂-C₈alkenyl, C₆-C₁₀ aryl, and a polymeric bulking group; and q and z areeach independently an integer from 0 to
 10. 117. The thiol of claim 116wherein each of R⁷ and R⁸ is C₁-C₄ alkylene-O—(C₁-C₄ alkylene)_(q)R⁹.118. The thiol of claim 116 wherein each of R⁷ and R⁸ is C₁-C₄alkylene-O—(C₁-C₄ alkylene)_(q)R⁹ and wherein q is zero.
 119. The thiolof claim 116 wherein each of R⁷ and R⁸ is C₁-C₄ alkylene-O—(C₁-C₄alkylene)_(q)R⁹, wherein q is zero, and wherein R⁹ is C₁-C₈ alkyl.